CALL TO WORSHIP: PSALM 95:1–7a
Come, let us sing to the LORD; let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before God's presence with thanksgiving
and raise a loud shout to the LORD with psalms.
For you, LORD, are a great God, and a great ruler above all gods.
In your hand are the caverns of the earth;
the heights of the hills are also yours.
Come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the LORD our maker.
For the LORD is our God,
and we are the people of God's pasture and the sheep of God's hand.
GATHERING SONG “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty!” #413
CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
The Lord seeks the lost.
O God, we have strayed, and we call out to you.
(pause for reflection and self-examination)
Heavenly Father hear us….
In the blessings you have given us
we forget you are the champion of the weak, the injured, the lost.
We call ourselves your church
but in our fellowship we look past the stranger,
the hungry, the naked, the sick, those in prison.
We call Christ our King
but we do not let your Son reign over our lives.
Save us Lord from the sins we know in our heart.
Save us Lord from the sins we hide.
God is generous and faithful, forgiving sins without number, welcoming all to the feast, giving us a place among the saints. Through the humble obedience of + Christ Jesus, who went to the cross for our sake, you are forgiven and made whole. The Spirit of God is at work in you, enabling you to live for one another. Amen.
HYMN OF PRAISE “Now Thank We All Our God” #840
PRAYER OF THE DAY
Let us pray. O God of power and might, your Son shows us the way of service, and in him we inherit the riches of your grace. Give us the wisdom to know what is right and the strength to serve the world you have made, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
THE FIRST LESSON: Ezekiel 34:11–16, 20–24
Thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land. I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice.
Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD to them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide, I will save my flock, and they shall no longer be ravaged; and I will judge between sheep and sheep. I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken.
Word of God, word of life. Thanks be to God.
THE SECOND LESSON: Ephesians 1:15–23
I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Word of God, word of life. Thanks be to God.
THE GOSPEL FOR THE DAY: Matthew 25:31–46
The holy gospel according to Saint Matthew. Glory to you, O Lord.
When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, 'Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.' Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?' And the king will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.' Then he will say to those at his left hand, 'You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?' Then he will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
The gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.
SERMON “Least” Pastor Phil Wold
HYMN OF THE DAY “Christ is Alive! Let Christians Sing” #389
THE APOSTLES’ CREED
Living together in trust and hope, we confess our faith.
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
Praise to you, almighty God and Father. You sent your Son to live among us and to bring us salvation.
Blessed be God.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ, incomparable son of the Father. You humbled yourself to share in our humanity, and you came to heal all our illnesses.
Blessed be God.
Praise to you, Holy Spirit, our defender and consoler. You heal our sickness with your mighty and life-giving power.
Blessed be God.
Holy and blessed Trinity, sustain your servants who are gathered here with your presence; drive away their sickness of body and spirit; and give them that victory of life and peace which will enable them to serve you now and evermore.
Amen
Father in heaven, for Jesus' sake, send your Holy Spirit upon your servant, drive away all sickness of body and spirit; make whole that which is broken; deliver this child of yours from the power of evil; and preserve in true faith, to share in the power of Christ's resurrection and to serve you with all the saints now and evermore.
Amen
The almighty Lord - a strong tower to all who put their trust in him, to whom all things in heaven, on earth, and under the earth bow and whom they obey - be now and evermore your defense, and make you know and feel that the only name under heaven given for health and salvation is the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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 “Crown Him With Many Crowns” #855
SENDING
Beloved of God, go in peace to love and serve the Lord. Thanks be to God.
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