Everything you need for September 5 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
O Lord Jesus Christ, preserve the congregation of believers with your never-failing mercy. Help us avoid whatever is wicked and harmful, and guide us in the way that leads to our salvation; for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
LESSON – DEUTERONOMY 4:1-2, 6-9
So now, Israel, listen to the statutes and the ordinances that I am teaching you, and carry them out so that you may live and so that you may enter the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving to you and take possession of it. 2Do not add to the word that I am commanding you, and do not subtract from it, so that you keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I am commanding you. 6Keep them and put them into practice, because in this way your wisdom and your understanding will be recognized by all the people who hear about all these statutes; and they will say, “This great nation is certainly a wise and understanding people,” 7because what other great nation is there that has a god as close to it as the Lord our God is to us whenever we call on him? 8What other great nation is there that has statutes and ordinances as righteous as this entire law that I am presenting to you today? 9But guard yourselves and guard your whole being diligently, so that you do not forget the things that your eyes have seen and so that those things do not disappear from your heart all the rest of the days of your life. Make them known to your children and to your children’s children.
GOSPEL – MARK 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
The Pharisees and some of the experts in the law came from Jerusalem and gathered around Jesus. 2They saw some of his disciples eating bread with unclean (that is, unwashed) hands. 3In fact, the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they scrub their hands with a fist, holding to the tradition of the elders. 4When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions they adhere to, such as the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and dining couches. 5The Pharisees and the experts in the law asked Jesus, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders? Instead they eat bread with unclean hands.” 6He answered them, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites. As it is written: These people honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. 7They worship me in vain, teaching human rules as if they were doctrines. 8“You abandon God’s commandment but hold to human tradition like the washing of pitchers and cups, and you do many other such things.” 14He called the crowd to him again and said, “Everyone, listen to me and understand. 15There is nothing outside of a man that can make him unclean by going into him. But the things that come out of a man are what make a man unclean. 21“In fact, from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual sins, theft, murder, 22adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, unrestrained immorality, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. 23All these evil things proceed from within and make a person unclean.”
DEVOTION – JAMES 1:17-27
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
Heavenly Father, open our eyes to this new life in Christ and our ears to hear Your Word.
Create and sustain in us a lively faith in Christ Jesus, and lead us by Your Spirit to be active in all good works.
Lord God, as we reflect on this year’s convention for our national church body, we praise you for providing your Holy Spirit to help us stand on the solid ground of your Word. Thank you for blessing us as we serve you in ministry and for giving so many new opportunities to us. Continue to raise up called workers to lead our churches and schools. Grant growth in our mission fields. Help us work together to continue strengthening established congregations.
May we always be confident in Jesus’ victory over sin and death and in his headship over the Church.
Heavenly Father, you would have your children on earth live together in peace. In your wisdom you permitted the attacks of September 11th to be unleashed against our nation.
Comfort all who still mourn this tragedy.
Give endurance and courage to all police, fire, and military personnel as they work, both at home and abroad, to maintain our borders, protect our freedoms, and save innocent lives.
Protect those men and women with us today and those overseas who put their lives in harm’s way so we remain safe.
Heavenly Father, help parents to raise up their children to know You as their help and hope, that they may not put their trust in princes in whom there is no salvation.
We place our hope in You and ask Your blessing on all rulers, that their plans would be ordered for the welfare of those they govern and that You would execute Your justice for the oppressed.
Heavenly Father, behold graciously the sick and those in any need especially friend of Andrea Schweim who is recovering in the hospital from the virus. For all those who came through Hurricane Ida last week, those who lost property or the family of those who lost lives, for all those with clean up and difficulty because of power outages. Be with them. Use us to supply what they are lacking as we can.
Strengthen all with the confidence in your grace and good gifts, that you can use this too for your glory.
All these things and whatever else You know that we need, grant us, Father, for the sake of Him 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.