The Seventeenth Sunday after
Pentecost
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Prelude, Welcome, and Information Hymn
#850 When In Our
Music, God Is Glorified |
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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. Psalm: Psalm 37:
1-9 Do not fret
because of the wicked; do not be envious of wrongdoers, for they
will soon fade like the grass, and wither like the green herb. Trust in
the Lord, and do good; so you will live in the land, and enjoy security. Take
delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him,
and he will act. He will
make your vindication shine like the light, and the justice of your cause like the noonday. Be still
before the Lord, and wait patiently for him; do not fret
over those who prosper in their way, over those who carry out evil devices. Refrain
from anger, and forsake wrath. Do not fret—it leads only to evil. For the
wicked shall be cut off, but those
who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land. |
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The Lord be with you. And
also with you. Let us pray. Benevolent,
merciful God: When we are empty, fill us. When we are weak in faith,
strengthen us. When we are cold in love, warm us, that with fervor we may
love our neighbors and serve them for the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, our
Savior and Lord. Amen. |
Reading:
Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4
A reading from the book of the prophet, Habakkuk
The oracle that the prophet Habakkuk saw. O Lord, how long
shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you “Violence!” and
you will not save? Why do you make me see wrong-doing and look at trouble?
Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. So
the law becomes slack and justice never prevails. The wicked surround the
righteous— therefore judgment comes forth perverted.
I will stand at my watchpost, and station myself on the rampart; I will
keep watch to see what he will say to me, and what he will answer concerning my
complaint. Then the Lord answered me and said: Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it. For there is still
a vision for the appointed time; it speaks of the end, and does not lie. If it
seems to tarry, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay. Look
at the proud! Their spirit is not right in them, but the righteous live by their
faith.
The Word of the Lord
Reading:
2 Timothy 1:1-14
A reading from the second letter to Timothy
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of the
promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, To Timothy, my beloved child:
Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I
am grateful to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors
did—when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. Recalling
your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy. I am
reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois
and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you.
For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within
you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of
cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of
self-discipline. Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord
or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, relying on
the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not
according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace. This grace
was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, but it has now been
revealed through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death
and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. For this
gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher, and for this
reason I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know the one in whom I
have put my trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard until that day what I
have entrusted to him. Hold to the standard of sound teaching that you
have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard
the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in
us.
The Word of the Lord.
Gospel
Verse:
Alleluia! The word of the
Lord endures forever. That word is the good news that was announced to you,
Alleluia! (1 Pet. 1:25)
Gospel Reading: Luke 17:5-10
A reading from the Gospel of Luke
The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” The Lord
replied, “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this
mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey
you. “Who among you would say to your slave who has just come in from
plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here at once and take your place
at the table’? Would you not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me,
put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and
drink’? Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded? So you
also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are
worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!’”
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise
to you, O Christ.
Sermon
(added at the end of the document)
Hymn
#810 O Jesus, I
Have Promised
Thanks and Offertory
Prayers of the Church:
God of power, you have given us the spirit of faith
and love in Christ Jesus. In that spirit, we offer our prayers for the world,
the church, and for all people according to their needs.
[Short
pause]
God of power,
faith is your gift to us, even if that faith is the size of mustard seed. Help
us to be faithful to you in all parts of our lives. Lord, in your mercy, Hear
our prayer.
God of power,
open our ears and hearts to the sound teaching that we have heard. Grant that
it form our lives. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God of power,
bless and uphold all who suffer from the hurricanes we call Fiona and Ian.
Empower and strengthen all who work for the peoples’ recovery. Lord, in your
mercy, Hear our prayer.
God of power,
watch over all working in the fields for a good harvest, especially migrant
laborers. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our
prayer.
God of power,
give peace to the peoples of Ukraine and Russia and all who suffer the terrors
and dangers of war. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God of power,
continue to grant healing and health to all who continue to struggle with the
COVID-19 virus. Strengthen all who work for healing in any way. Lord, in your
mercy, Hear our prayer.
God of power, we long to hear the Good News. Look with favour on all who
minister in the name of your Son. Bless the congregation of Trinity Church in
London and bless their pastor, Pr. Steve Johnston. Lord in your
mercy, Hear our Prayer.
God of power,
we ask you to hear our unspoken prayers for so many we are concerned about,
both near and far… * … Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer. {*Gail
Mauer, Deb Kirschner, Diane Corns}
God of power,
you have called us to faith as you called Paul and Timothy. Trusting in your
mercy and love, we commend to
you all for whom we pray, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Hymn #815 I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light
The
Lord’s Prayer
Finally let
us pray for all things as our Lord would have us ask:
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.
Closing prayer & Benediction
Father,
We receive with gratitude your Word of life, read aloud and kept in our
hearts. Your word, living and true gives us light and life. We thank you and
give praise for your power and glory, in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
Hymn
#517 Lord, Keep
Us Steadfast in Your Word
Benediction & Sending
May the Lord
bless us and keep us.
May the
Lord’s face shine upon us with grace and mercy.
May the Lord
look upon us with favor and X give us peace.
Amen.
Go in peace. Serve the Lord. Thanks
be to God.
W
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Services
for the next few months will be in person or on YouTube and accessible from
an email link or our church Facebook page. Services for September, October,
and November are shown below: October 9
Communion, Church, 11:00am (Thanksgiving) October 16
Service on YouTube, 11:00am October 23
Service on YouTube, 11:00am October 30
Communion, Church, 11:00am (Reformation Sunday) November 6
Service on YouTube, 11:00am November 13
Communion, Saxonia Hall,11:00am
(All Saints/service of remembrance) November 20
Service on YouTube, 11:00am (Christ the King) November 27
Communion, Church, 11:00am (First Sunday in Advent) |
This grace was given to us in Christ
Jesus before the ages began, but it has now been revealed through the
appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and
immortality to light through the gospel.
·
What I’m
about say is rather personal. I know that pastors are not supposed to preach
about their own feelings or their personal understandings of the Good News;
that can swing quite close to heresy and really, who care what I have to say?
It is the Word of God that bears grace, not the senses and feelings of the
preacher.
·
Still if a
passage means something to one person, someone else might benefit from hearing
just that. Maybe something I say might spark something in you.
·
This passage
from the second letter to Timothy has become a “watchword” of sorts for me. For
reasons I can’t recall it’s been burned into my memory. I like to remember it
and I hope I can keep it in the front of my mind when times get tough.
·
Speaking of
tough times, in this letter, Paul is writing to Timothy from prison. He says Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony
about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the
gospel… Paul may have been writing from Rome where many scholars
believe he may have been awaiting trial and execution; we aren’t sure. He knows
Timothy is in a tough place since the church he serves (Ephesus) is in the
middle of internal conflict. Both men are suffering and Paul is trying to build
up Timothy for his struggle.
·
Paul reminds
Timothy that in the middle of their struggles, the grace of God is present. His
faith and his strength come from God. He does not have to rely on his own
courage and toughness since all these gifts come from God. No matter what, both
men rely on the power of God and God’s grace.
·
Paul points
out that grace has been given to us
in Jesus and had been revealed in Jesus’ incarnation and life. It is he who has
abolished death and brought life and
immortality to light through the gospel… No amount of bad times or
opposition could change that.
·
I know we’ve
all faced troubles, every one of us. For his part, Martin Luther told himself “I have been baptized!” when faced with
depression and the possibility of despair. The words of Paul to Timothy might
be a comfort to us in our troubles.
·
I realize we
still face the reality of death and dying in our lives and in the lives of
those around us. How can we say Jesus has abolished death? This reality cannot be ignored.
·
I think some
other words might suit us better. The New English Translation puts it this way:
He has broken the power of death
and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel! The
reality of death is seen AND its power to frighten or cause despair is broken.
There is a difference. As the acclamation in our Communion Service says Christ
has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again. His death was real… and
his resurrection is real. Death no longer has the power to separate us from
God. In his letter to the Romans, Paul wrote I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers,
nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor
height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate
us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom. 8:38-39)
·
We can hold
fast to that and be faithful even through fear, troubles, changes, and whatever
may come. Again we listen to Paul: Hold
to the standard of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and
love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard the good treasure entrusted to you,
with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.
He has broken the power of death
and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel!
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