December 3 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

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Dear friends, let us approach God with a true heart and confess our sins, asking him in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to forgive us.

Lord of life, I confess that I am by nature dead in sin.  For faithless worrying and selfish pride, For sins of habit and sins of choice, For the evil I have done and the good I have failed to do, You should cast me away from your presence forever.  O Lord, I am sorry for my sins. Forgive me, for Jesus’ sake.

Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. In his great mercy, God made us alive in Christ even when we were dead in our sins.  Hear the word of Christ through his called servant: I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

In peace, let us pray to the Lord. For the well-being of all people everywhere, that they may receive from you all they need to sustain body and life, hear our prayer, O Lord. Lord, have mercy.

For the spread of your life-giving gospel throughout the world, that all who are lost in sin may be brought to faith in you, hear our prayer, O Christ. Christ, have mercy.

For patience and perseverance in this life, that we may not lose the hope of heaven as we await your return, hear our prayer, O Lord. Lord, have mercy.

Lord of life, live in us that we may live for you. Amen.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

Stir up your power, O Lord, and come. Protect us by your strength, and save us from the threatening dangers of our sins; for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.

LESSON – GALATIANS 5:1-5

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not allow anyone to put the yoke of slavery on you again. ² Look, I, Paul, tell you that if you allow yourselves to be circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you. ³ I testify again to every man who allows himself to be circumcised that he is obligated to do the whole law. ⁴ You who are trying to be declared righteous by the law are completely separated from Christ. You have fallen from grace.  ⁵ Indeed, through the Spirit, we by faith are eagerly waiting for the sure hope of righteousness.

GOSPEL – JOHN 14:1-6

“Do not let your heart be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. ² In my Father’s house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to be with me, so that you may also be where I am. ⁴ You know where I am going, and you know the way.”  ⁵ “Lord, we don’t know where you are going,” Thomas replied, “so how can we know the way?”  ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.

DEVOTION – GENESIS 3:21-24

CONFESSION OF FAITH – NICENE CREED

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and became fully human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate. He suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who in unity with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.  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

Gracious Lord, sustain Your saints to the end as we enter another Church Year.

Encourage the preachers of Your Word and all who hear, that the testimony about Christ may be confirmed among us as we wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Give boldness and faithfulness to Matthew, our Synod president, our district president, our circuit pastor; and all pastors in Christ.

Renew the faith and quicken the love of all Christians, that we may be enriched in all speech and knowledge.

Visit us in Your compassion, O Lord.  We pray a special request for our dear brother in Christ, Dave Zubke, for his recovery after his surgery last week.  Deliver the sick from their infirmity, the troubled from their afflictions, the grieving from their sorrow and the dying from their fear.

May all who cry to You receive grace according to Your will.

Triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—it is by your hand alone that we’ve been able to conduct gospel ministry in Vietnam. We praise you for letting us support the training of Hmong Fellowship Church leaders at the theological education center in Hanoi. Continue to bless this program that trains pastors, who then return to their congregations to teach other pastors and members. Thank you for giving the members of the Hmong Fellowship Church a love for your Word.

May a similar spirit spread across the world so that your kingdom grows rapidly according to your will.

Merciful Lord, Your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, entered Jerusalem to shouts and cheers of joy.

Grant that we may be stirred by the Word and Sacraments to rejoice anew, now and at His second advent.

Gracious Father, You have made us glad to enter into Your presence to hear the good news of our Savior and receive Your gifts. Preserve Your Church against all her enemies, and lead us to walk in Your ways and to follow Your paths, that when Jesus returns in His glory we may welcome Him with glad hosannas; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, 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.

THE LORD’S BLESSING

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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