17 Pentecost Sept 24

CALL TO WORSHIP - PSALM 145

I will exalt you, my God and king, and bless your name forever and ever.

Every day will I bless you and praise your name forever and ever.

Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised!

There is no end to your greatness.

One generation shall praise your works to another and shall declare your power.

I will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty and all your marvelous works.

They shall tell of the might of your wondrous acts,

and I will recount your greatness.

They shall publish the remembrance of your great goodness;

they shall sing joyfully of your righteousness.

The LORD is gracious and full of compassion,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

GATHERING SONG “Praise the One Who Breaks the Darkness” #843

CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS

In the Name of the Father, and the Son, + and the Holy Spirit. Amen

The Lord is about to do a new thing,

we his people are about to be rescued,

let us prepare our selves for this grace.

(pause for self-examination)

Merciful God...

Oh how we are tempted to seek to save ourselves.

We forget your faithfulness saves us.

Save us from our self-deception.

forgive us our arrogance in sin.

(pause for reflection)

God does a new thing in Jesus Christ, making a way in the wilderness of our infidelity,

for the restoration of right-relationship. For Christ's sake your sins are forgiven.

By the power of the Holy Spirit, with clean hearts, turn to the Lord in a worship of purest gratitude. In the name of the Father, and the Son, + and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

Let us pray.

Almighty and eternal God,

you show perpetual loving kindness to us your servants.

Because we cannot rely on our own abilities,

grant us your merciful judgment,

and train us to embody the generosity of your Son,

Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.

Amen.

THE FIRST LESSON: Jonah 3:10--4:11

When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.

But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry. He prayed to the LORD and said, "O LORD! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing. And now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live." And the LORD said, "Is it right for you to be angry?" Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down east of the city, and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to see what would become of the city.

The Lord GOD appointed a bush, and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort; so Jonah was very happy about the bush. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the bush, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God prepared a sultry east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint and asked that he might die. He said, "It is better for me to die than to live."

But God said to Jonah, "Is it right for you to be angry about the bush?" And he said, "Yes, angry enough to die."

Then the LORD said, "You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow; it came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a 120 thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also many animals?"

THE SECOND LESSON: Philippians 1:21-30

For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.

Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel, and are in no way intimidated by your opponents. For them this is evidence of their destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God's doing. For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well--since you are having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

Word of God, word of life. Thanks be to God.

THE GOSPEL FOR THE DAY: Matthew 20:1-16

The holy gospel according to Saint Matthew. Glory to you, O Lord.

[Jesus said to the disciples:] "The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. When he went out about nine o'clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace; and he said to them, 'You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' So they went. When he went out again about noon and about three o'clock, he did the same. And about five o'clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, 'Why are you standing here idle all day?' They said to him, 'Because no one has hired us.' He said to them, 'You also go into the vineyard.' When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, 'Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.' When those hired about five o'clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, saying, 'These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.' But he replied to one of them, 'Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?' So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

The gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.

SERMON “Are You?” Pastor Phil Wold

HYMN OF THE DAY “Shine, Jesus Shine” #671

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.

THE OFFERING AND OFFERING PRAYER

Let us pray. Blessed are you, O God, maker of all things. Through your goodness you have blessed us with these gifts: our selves, our time, and our possessions. Use us, and what we have gathered, in feeding the world with your love, through the one who gave himself for us, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

THE SERVICE OF PRAYERS FOR HEALING

Let us pray for the whole people of God in Christ Jesus, and for all people according to their needs.

Let us pray for all who suffer, all in pain or grief or any kind of suffering…

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Let us pray for recovery from sickness, that God, the strength of the weak and the comfort of the suffering, may grant God’s healing power…

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Let us pray for healing in our communities, between nations, among peoples, within families…

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Let us pray for all those who depend upon our prayers…

Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Gracious God, in baptism you anointed us with the oil of salvation, and joined us to the death and resurrection of your Son. Bless all who seek your healing presence in their lives. In their suffering draw them more deeply into the mystery of your love, that following Christ in the way of the cross they may know the power of his resurrection; who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen

As you hear the promise of God’s presence, may God bless you with the healing power of the Holy Spirit. May God forgive you your sins, release you from suffering, and restore you to wholeness and strength. May God deliver you from all evil, preserve you in all goodness, and bring you to everlasting life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

THE SIGN OF PEACE IS SHARED

The peace of Christ be with you always. And also with you.

NOISY OFFERING

THE LORD'S PRAYER

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

BLESSING

SENDING SONG “God of Tempest, God of Whirlwind” #400

SENDING

Go forth into the world to be lavishly and blindly generous,

to give without expectation of return or reward,

and to love others with the generous love of God.

Thanks be to God.

POSTLUDE