Welcome & Announcements

Prelude: God So Loved the World

Confession & Forgiveness:
In the name of + God, who makes a way in the wilderness, walks with us, and guides us in our pilgrimage.
Amen.

Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another.

Silence is kept for reflection.

Holy One,
we confess that we have wandered far from you: we have not trusted your promises, we have ignored your prophets in our own day, we have squandered our inheritance of grace, we have failed to recognize you in our midst.  Have mercy on us!  Forgive us and turn us again to you.  Teach us to follow in your ways, assure us again of your love, and help us to love our neighbor.  Amen.

Beloved in Christ, the Word draws near to you, and all who call out to God shall be saved. In Jesus, God comes to you again and again and gathers you under wings of love. In + Jesus’ name, your sins are forgiven. God journeys with you and teaches you how to live in love.
Amen.

Opening Hymn: ELW 777 “Come to Me, All Pilgrims Thirsty”
Come to me, all pilgrims thirsty; Drink, the water I will give.
If you knew what gift I offer, You would come to me and live.

Jesus, ever flowing fountain, Give us water from your well.
In the gracious gift you offer There is joy no tongue can tell

Come to me, all trav’lers weary; come that I may give you rest.
Drink the cup of like I offer; at this table be my guest.

Jesus, ever flowing fountain, Give us water from your well.
In the gracious gift you offer There is joy no tongue can tell

Come to me, believers burdened; Find refreshment in this place.
Come, receive the gift I offer, Turn to me and seek my face.

Jesus, ever flowing fountain, Give us water from your well.
In the gracious gift you offer There is joy no tongue can tell

Come to me, repentant sinners; Leave behind your guilt and shame.
Come and know divine compassion, Turn to me, I call your name.

Jesus, ever flowing fountain, Give us water from your well.
In the gracious gift you offer There is joy no tongue can tell

Apostolic Greeting:
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
And also with you.

Prayer of the Day:
Let us pray.
Eternal God, your kingdom has broken into our troubled world through the life, death, and resurrection of your Son. Help us to hear your word and obey it, and bring your saving love to fruition in our lives, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.

First Reading: Isaiah 55:1-9
¹Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. ²Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. ³Incline your ear, and come to me; listen, so that you may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. ⁴See, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. ⁵See, you shall call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.

⁶Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; ⁷let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. ⁸For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD. ⁹For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Gospel: Luke 13:1-9
This is the Holy Gospel according to Luke, the 13th chapter.
Glory to you, O Lord.

¹At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. ²He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? ³No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. ⁴Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? ⁵No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.”

⁶Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. ⁷So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’ ⁸He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. ⁹If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’”

This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.

Children’s Message

Sermon

Hymn of the Day: LBW 358 “Glories of Your Name Are Spoken”
Glories of your name are spoken, Zion, city of our God;
He whose word cannot be broken Formed you for his own abode.
On the Rock of Ages founded, What can shake your sure repose?
With salvation’s walls surrounded, You may smile at all your foes.

See, the streams of living waters, Springing from eternal love,
Well supply your sons and daughters, And all fear of want remove.
Who can faint, while such a river Ever will their thirst assuage?
Grace which, like the Lord, the giver, Never fails from age to age.

Round each habitation hov’ring, See the cloud and fire appear
For a glory and a cov’ring, Showing that the Lord is near.
Thus deriving from their banner Light by night and shade by day,
Safe they feed upon the manna Which God gives them on their way.

Savior, since of Zion’s city I through grace a member am,
Let the world deride or pity, I will glory in Your name.
Fading are the worldlings’ pleasures All their boasted pomp and show;
Solid joys and lasting treasures None but Zion’s children know.

Apostle’s Creed:
Let us confess our faith using the Apostle’s Creed:
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s 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 to the dead.*
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come 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:
Drawn close to the heart of God, we offer these prayers for the church, the world, and all who are in need.

Prayers continue with each petition ending:

Merciful God,
receive our prayer.

Accept the prayers we bring, O God, on behalf of a world in need, for the sake of Jesus Christ.
Amen.

Offering:
https://tithe.ly/give_new/www/#/tithely/give-one-time/468062

The Great Thanksgiving:
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is indeed right, our duty and our joy, that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, almighty and merciful God, through our Savior Jesus Christ. You call your people to cleanse their hearts and prepare with joy for the paschal feast, that, renewed in the gift of baptism, we may come to the fullness of your grace. And so, with all the choirs of angels, with the church on earth and the hosts of heaven, we praise your name saying:
Come, Holy Spirit!

God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, you have brought us this far along the way. In times of bitterness you did not abandon us, but guided us into the path of love and light. In every age you sent prophets to make known your loving will for all humanity. The cry of the poor has become your own cry; our hunger and thirst for justice is your own desire. In the fullness of time, you sent your chosen servant to preach good news to the afflicted, to break bread with the outcast and despised, and to ransom those in bondage to prejudice and sin.

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 all people for the forgiveness of sin. Do this for the remembrance of me.

For as often as we eat of this bread and drink from this cup we proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.

Remembering, therefore, his death and resurrection, we await the day when Jesus shall return to free all the earth from the bonds of slavery and death. Come, Lord Jesus! And let the church say, Amen.
Amen!

Send your Holy Spirit, our advocate, to fill the hearts of all who share this bread and cup with courage and wisdom to pursue love and justice in all the world. Come, Spirit of freedom! And let the church say, Amen.
Amen!

Join our prayers and praise with your prophets and martyrs of every age, that, rejoicing in the hope of the resurrection, we might live in the freedom and hope of your Son. Through him, with him, in him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours, almighty Father, now and forever.
Amen.

Lord’s Prayer:
Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit, let us pray as Jesus taught us saying:
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.

Communion

Table Blessing:
The body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ strengthen you and keep you in his grace.
Amen.

Post-Communion Prayer:
Let us pray.
Blessed Jesus, in this rich meal of grace, you have fed us with your body, the bread of life. Now send us forth to bear your life-giving hope to a world in need.
Amen.

Benediction:
You are children of God, anointed with the oil of gladness and strengthened for the journey. Almighty God, motherly, majestic, and mighty, + bless you this day and always.
Amen.

Sending Hymn: ELW 542 “O Living Bread of Heaven”
O living Bread from heaven, how well you feed your guest!
The gifts that you have given have filled my heart with rest.
O wondrous food of blessing! O cup that heals our woes!
My heart, this gift possessing, in thankful song o’erflows!

My Savior, you have led me within your holiest place,
and here yourself have fed me with treasures of your grace;
for you have freely given what earth could never buy,
the bread of life from heaven, that now I shall not die.

You gave me all I wanted; this food can death destroy.
And you have freely granted the cup of endless joy.
My Lord, I do not merit the favor you have shown,
and all my soul and spirit bow down before your throne.

Oh, grant me then, well-strengthened with heav’nly food, while here
my course on earth is lengthened, to serve you, free from fear:
and bring me home to praise you where none can peace destroy,
where I will ever raise you glad songs in endless joy.

Sharing of the Peace & Dismissal:
May the peace of the Lord be with you always.
And also with you.

Go in peace. Jesus meets you on the way.
Thanks be to God!

Postlude

 

Prayer Requests: Ken Baker, Rosemary Fernsler, Family and friends of Karen Shaffer, Kay Martin, Jeff Charles, Ryan Hunter, Dr. Elwood Reiner, Ron Guffey, Dave Wall, Roger Neilson, Russ Wynn, Janet Day, Brandon Baker, Justin Golder, Viv Marsh, Gladys Fawcett, Peyton Weiser, Alice Snyder, Marie Tanner, Grace Yost, Peg Swinehart, Martha Ketchem, Bob Keifer.

Portions reprinted from Evangelical Lutheran Worship, copyright 2006.  Used by permission of Augsburg Fortress, license #SBL09796L.  Music reprinted from the ELW, by permission of OneLicense, license #A712349.  Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America.   Used by permission.