April 14 online worship

Preparations for Worship:

• Do your best to eliminate distractions like the phone, TV, etc.
• Worship actively! Whether you are by yourself or with others, try reading the parts of the service aloud (responses, lessons, and prayers).
• This service is for children too. Help them participate. Ask those who have that ability to read a prayer or lesson aloud. Take a moment to describe what’s happening. Ask questions. Encourage little ones to draw what they are hearing while you all listen. Unlike our more typical Sunday worship at church, you can pause at any time for questions and discussion.
• Before you begin, load each of the videos below. (You might first have to get past a distracting ad.)
• Pause for a moment of quiet meditation. Then pray:
  “Heavenly Father, I have come to worship you. Draw near to me in your gracious Word, and assure me of your loving kindness. Curb my wandering thoughts, that with undivided attention I may hear your voice and speak your praise. Through Jesus Christ. Amen.”

CONFESSION OF SINS

The grace of our Lord (+) Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you. And also with you.

We have come into the presence of God, who created us to love and serve him as his dear children.  But we have disobeyed him and deserve only his wrath and punishment.  Therefore, let us confess our sins to him and plead for his mercy.

Merciful Father in heaven, I am altogether sinful from birth.  In countless ways I have sinned against you and do not deserve to be called your child.  But trusting in Jesus, my Savior, I pray: Have mercy on me according to your unfailing love.  Cleanse me from my sin, and take away my guilt.

God, our heavenly Father, has forgiven all your sins.  By the perfect life and innocent death of our Lord Jesus Christ, he has removed your guilt forever.  You are his own dear child.  May God give you strength to live according to his will. Amen.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

O God, by the humiliation of your Son, you lifted up this fallen world from the despair of death. By his resurrection to life, grant your faithful people gladness of heart and the hope of eternal joys; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.

LESSON – ACTS 3:11-20

¹¹While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people came running toward them in utter amazement in the area called Solomon’s Colonnade.

¹²When Peter saw this, he addressed the people: “Men of Israel, why are you amazed at this? Why are you staring at us, as if by our own power or godliness we have made this man walk? ¹³The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over and disowned in the presence of Pilate, though he had decided to release him. ¹⁴You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer given to you. ¹⁵You killed the Author of Life, whom God raised from the dead. We are witnesses of this. ¹⁶And on the basis of faith in his name, it is the name of Jesus that has strengthened this man, whom you see and know. This faith that comes through Jesus has given him this perfect health in the presence of all of you.

¹⁷“Now brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, just like your leaders. ¹⁸But in this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through the mouth of all the prophets: that his Christ would suffer. ¹⁹Therefore repent and return to have your sins wiped out, ²⁰so that refreshing times may come from the presence of the Lord and that he may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you.

LESSON – 1 JOHN 1:5-2:2

⁵This is the message we heard from him and proclaim to you: God is light. In him there is no darkness at all. ⁶If we say we have fellowship with him but still walk in darkness, we are lying and do not put the truth into practice. ⁷But if we walk in the light, just as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. ⁸If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰If we say we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar, and his Word is not in us. 

My children, I write these things to you so that you will not sin. If anyone does sin, we have an Advocate before the Father: Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. ²He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the whole world.

DEVOTION – LUKE 24:36-49

CONFESSION OF FAITH

I believe in God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth.

I believe 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 is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.  From there 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.

OFFERING

Offerings may be given on-line at tithe.ly/risensavior, mailed to the church, or dropped off at the church.

Our members have joined together in faith and love to do the Lord’s work in this community and around the world.  Guests need not feel obligated to participate in this offering which supports our ministry.

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH

Lord God, in Your presence we find fullness of joy, and by Your right hand, Christ Jesus, You win and deliver peace forevermore.

In the midst of this world’s sins and sorrows, give us peace in the knowledge of His salvation and confident hope in the resurrection of the dead.

Heavenly Father, by the incarnation of Your Son and the reconciliation of His cross, You have made us Your children and gathered us into Your Holy Church.

Sustain the preaching of Your Holy Word and its message of repentance for the forgiveness of sins in Jesus’ name among us and all the nations of the world.

Give peace, Lord, to our homes and enliven them by Christ’s resurrected life. Let the forgiveness of sins reign among husbands and wives, parents and children.

Assure those who live alone that they, too, are Your children, upheld by Your right hand.

God of all comfort, You have compassion on those who are afflicted, especially Jennifer Born as she recovers from her surgery this last week.

Remember and have mercy on all those in need of Your healing and deliverance.

Our risen and ascended Lord Jesus, you rule all things for the good of your church. The words you spoke to your disciples ring true still today: “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.” Therefore, we ask you to send out workers into the harvest field. Keep this need for gospel ministers at the forefront of our minds and give us opportunities to encourage men of every age to consider pastoral ministry. Bless the professors at our seminary in their teaching and the students with beneficial learning in the classroom and in their early field training.

Fan into flame the gifts you have given them through your Holy Spirit through regular worship in chapel and daily study of your Holy Word. We pray trusting your good and perfect will for your church.

Into Your hands, O Lord, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in Your mercy; through Jesus Christ, our Lord who taught 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.

PRAYER

O Lord God, our heavenly Father, pour out the Holy Spirit on your faithful people. Keep us strong in your grace and truth, protect and comfort us in all temptation, and bestow on us your saving peace, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.

Brothers and sisters, go in peace. Live in harmony with one another.

Serve the Lord with gladness.

The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you.

The Lord look on you with favor and (+) give you peace.

Amen.

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