The livestream may be found here.
August 1, 2021, 9:30
a.m.
The Tenth
Sunday after Pentecost
The color green, used for the vestments and paraments for the Sundays
after Pentecost, represents growth and life in the Holy Spirit.
OLD TESTAMENT: The book of
Exodus recounts the saving act of God in sending his people the manna from heaven, which sustained them
in the wilderness until they reached the Promised Land. In John 6, Jesus refers
to another ‘bread from heaven’ which God the Father gives. This bread goes
beyond earthly food and even beyond the miraculous manna of Exodus. Jesus himself is the bread which gives life to the
world.
NEW TESTAMENT: Paul exhorts the
Christians of Ephesus to a life ‘worthy of the calling to which (they) have
been called.’ This is life together in the community of faith, and is marked by
humility, gentleness, patience, and bearing with one another in love. God
himself makes this life possible by granting spiritual gifts to the community.
These spiritual gifts are meant not for self-promotion, but for the building up
of the body of Christ. The twin standards of ‘truth’ and ‘love’ are not
mutually exclusive, but in fact are inseparable. Anyone who claims one standard
over the other does an injustice to them both. And yet the impossibility of either
ever fully comprehending truth or ever acting in perfect love should lead us to
deeper humility and adoration of the one who is himself Love and Truth.
GOSPEL: The opening hymn, Guide Me Ever, Great Redeemer, imagines the
singer tracing the forty-year wilderness journey of Israel, asking God for help
in reaching the promised land. However, this wilderness journey is a metaphor
for the journey of the believer through life. The pilgrim is headed for ‘Canaan,’ here understood as the kingdom of heaven, and must
traverse the ‘Jordan River,’ or death, in order to reach it. On the way the
pilgrim is led by God’s Word, sustained by the water from the crystal fountain
(a reference to baptismal life in the Spirit) and is fed with bread from heaven
(the Eucharist).
OPENING
MUSIC Guide Me Ever, Great Redeemer Ralph C. Schultz
BRIEF ORDER
FOR CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
Stand
In the name of the Father,
and of the X Son, and
of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Almighty God, to
whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid:
Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that
we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name, through Jesus
Christ our Lord.
Amen
If we say we
have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. But if we
confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and
cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Silence for reflection and
self-examination.
Most merciful God,
we
confess that we are in bondage to sin
and cannot free ourselves.
We have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done
and by what we have left undone.
We have
not loved you with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us.
Forgive us, renew us, and lead us,
so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your holy name. Amen
Almighty God, in his mercy, has given his Son to die for us and, for his
sake, forgives
us all our sins. As a called and ordained minister of the Church of Christ, and
by his authority, I therefore declare to you the entire forgiveness of all your
sins, in the name of the Father,
and of the X Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
THE HOLY COMMUNION
I will go to the altar of God,
to the God of my joy and gladness. Psalm 43:4a
X HYMN Guide Me Ever, Great Redeemer
pilgrim through this barren land.
I am weak, but you are mighty;
hold me with your pow’rful hand.
Bread of heaven, bread of heaven,
feed me now and evermore,
feed me now and evermore.
2 Open now the crystal fountain
where the healing waters flow;
let the fire and cloudy pillar
lead me all my journey through.
Strong deliv’rer, strong deliv’rer,
shield me with your mighty arm,
shield me with your mighty arm.
3 When I tread the verge of Jordan,
bid my anxious fears subside;
death of death and hell’s destruction,
land me safe on Canaan’s side.
Songs and praises, songs and praises,
I will raise forevermore,
I will raise forevermore.
Text:
William Williams, 1717-1791; tr. William Williams and Peter Williams, 1722-1796,
alt.
APOSTOLIC GREETING and PRAYER OF THE DAY
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.
Father, giver of lasting life,
satisfy our hunger through Christ, the bread of
Life,
and quench our thirst with your gift of faith,
that we may no
longer work for the food that perishes,
but believe in the One whom you
have sent.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the
Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen
CALL TO
THE WORD
This
is the work of God,
that
you believe in him whom he has sent. John 6:29
Let us hear the Word of the Lord.
Sit
First READING Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15
2The whole
congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the
wilderness. 3The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by
the hand of the Lord in the land
of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have
brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
4Then the Lord said
to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the
people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test
them, whether they will follow my instruction or not.”
9Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the
Israelites, ‘Draw near to the Lord,
for he has heard your complaining.’ ” 10And
as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward
the wilderness, and the glory of the Lord
appeared in the cloud. 11The Lord
spoke to Moses and said, 12“I have heard the complaining of the
Israelites; say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning
you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’ ”
13In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the
morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. 14When the layer
of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky
substance, as fine as frost on the ground. 15When the Israelites saw
it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was.
Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord
has given you to eat.”
The Word
of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
PSALM
78:23-29
Read responsively between pastor and congregation.
The Lord rained down manna upon them to eat. (vs. 24)
The Lord rained down manna upon them
to eat.
23 [The LORD] commanded the | clouds
above*
and opened the | doors of
heaven.
24 He rained down manna upon | them to eat*
and
gave them | grain from heaven.
25 So mortals ate the | bread of
angels;*
he provided for them | food
enough.
26 He caused the east wind to blow | in the heavens*
and
led out the south wind | by his might.
27 He rained down flesh upon | them
like dust*
and winged birds like the sand |
of the sea.
28 He let it fall in the midst | of their camp*
and
round | about their dwellings.
29 So they ate and | were well
filled,*
for he gave them | what they
craved.
The Lord rained down manna upon them to eat.
SECOND
READING Ephesians
4:1-16
I therefore, the prisoner in the
Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been
called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with
one another in love, 3making every effort to maintain the unity of
the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit,
just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, 5one Lord,
one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all, who is above all
and through all and in all.
7But each of us was given grace according to the measure of
Christ’s gift. 8Therefore it is said,
“When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive;
he gave gifts to his people.”
9(When it says, “He ascended,” what
does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10He
who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that
he might fill all things.) 11The gifts he gave were that some would
be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12to
equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until
all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of
God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. 14We
must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of
doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. 15But
speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the
head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together
by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly,
promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.
The Word
of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Stand
VERSE
John 14:23
Spoken in unison by the congregation.
Alleluia.
Jesus said, Those who love me will keep my word,
and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with
them. Alleluia.
Gospel John 6:24-35
The Holy Gospel according
to St. John.
Glory to you, O Lord.
24When the
crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were [beside the sea,] they
themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.
25When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to
him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” 26Jesus answered them, “Very
truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but
because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27Do not work for the food
that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of
Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” 28Then
they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?”
29Jesus answered
them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” 30So
they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see
it and believe you? What work are you performing? 31Our ancestors
ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from
heaven to eat.’ ” 32Then
Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the
bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from
heaven. 33For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven
and gives life to the world.” 34They said to him, “Sir, give us this
bread always.”
35Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me
will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
The Gospel of the Lord. Praise
to you, O Christ.
Sit
Sermon
Stand
X HYMN OF THE DAY
How Sweet the Name of Jesus Sounds
in a believer's ear!
It soothes our
sorrows, heals our wounds,
and drives away all
fear.
2 It makes the wounded
spirit whole
and calms the heart's
unrest;
'tis manna to the
hungry soul
and to the weary,
rest.
3 Dear name! The rock on
which I build,
my shield and hiding
place;
my never-failing
treasury, filled
with boundless stores
of grace.
although with sin
defiled.
The devil charges me
in vain,
and I am owned a
child.
my prophet, priest,
and king,
my Lord, my life, my
way, my end,
accept the praise I
bring.
how cold my warmest
thought;
but when I see thee
as thou art,
I'll praise thee as I
ought.
with every fleeting
breath;
and may the music of
thy name
refresh my soul in
death!
Text: John Newton, 1725-1807, alt.
CONFESSION OF
FAITH
The pastor and people confess
the faith of the Church in the words of the Apostles’ Creed.
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He
was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and
born of the virgin Mary.
He
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was
crucified, died, and was buried.
He
descended into hell.
On
the third day he rose again.
He
ascended into heaven,
and
is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He
will come again 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
A brief silence
Thanks be to you, O God and Father of us all, for
giving us the true bread from heaven, your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. By his
incarnation, death, and resurrection, satisfy our hunger and thirst for your
salvation. Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
United in the one body by the one Spirit, we rejoice in
one hope, one faith, and one baptism into Christ. Help us grow deeper in our
unity with you and with each other, leading a life worthy of the calling by
which we have been called. Lord, in your mercy,
hear our
prayer.
We ask your blessing upon those traveling to Corpus
Christi, Texas, for this year’s Lutheran Week. Be among the delegates and
visitors to the Convocation of the North American Lutheran Church, that the
work they do may be to the glory of your name and for the benefit of your whole
Church. Lord, in your mercy,
hear our
prayer.
Inspire the leaders of the world to do justice, to love
mercy, and to walk humbly with you. Be with all people; that they may live together
in harmony in their nations and communities. Lord, in your mercy,
hear our
prayer.
Even as you fill our souls with living bread, we thank
you that you open wide your hand and satisfy the needs of every living
creature. Come to the aid of all who long for daily bread, and provide for
their needs that they may serve and seek you in health and strength. Inspire us
to come to their aid; and give us the Spirit of self-control, so that we may
use your gifts of food and drink for your glory and not in self-indulgence.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our
prayer.
Hear the cries of all who suffer any need of body,
mind, and spirit, and visit them in their distress. Uphold all those who fall;
lift up those who are bowed down. Come to the aid of all who we name before
you.
The pastor reads those names which have been submitted
for prayer.
The people are invited to offer petitions and
thanksgivings.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear our
prayer.
We give you thanks, for you have given us the food
which endures to eternal life. We thank you for all who have died in the faith
and for our departed loved ones. Continue to feed us with the bread of heaven,
until the day when we join with them in the feast which is to come. Lord, in
your mercy,
hear our
prayer.
Into your hands, Father, we commend all for whom we
pray, trusting in your steadfast love,
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
Peace
The
peace of the Lord be with you always.
And also with you.
The people exchange a sign of peace
with the simple words, Peace be with you.
Sit
The Lord’s Table is prepared.
Stand
OFFERTORY Proverbs 3:9-10
Spoken in unison by the congregation.
Honor the Lord with your substance and with the first fruits
of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty,
and your vats will be bursting with wine.
PRAYER OF PREPARATION
As the grain once scattered in the fields
and the grapes once dispersed on the hillside
are now reunited on this table in bread and wine,
so, Lord, may your whole Church be gathered together
from the corners of the earth into your kingdom.
Amen
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 him thanks and praise.
It is indeed right and salutary that we should at all
times
and
in all places offer thanks and praise to you, O Lord, holy Father, through your
Son, Jesus Christ;
On the first day of the week, you
gather his people together to celebrate his paschal mystery of redemption. By
your saving word you teach us, and in the supper of the Lord you feed this
assembly with the bread of heaven; so that with joy we may know ourselves as a
people reborn in a living hope, and walking in the fellowship of love as we
await in faith the return of our Savior.
And so,
with the Church on earth and the hosts of heaven, we praise your name and join
their unending hymn:
Heaven and earth
are full of your glory.
Hosanna
in the highest!
Blessed is
he who comes in the name of the LORD!
Hosanna
in the highest!
You are indeed holy, almighty and merciful God;
you
are most holy, and great is the majesty of your glory.
You so loved the world that you gave your only Son,
that
whoever believes in him may not perish
but have eternal life.
Having come into the world, he fulfilled for us your
holy will
and
accomplished our salvation.
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 for all people for the forgiveness of sin.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
Remembering, therefore, his salutary command,
his
life-giving Passion and death,
his
glorious resurrection and ascension,
and his promise to come again,
we
give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,
not
as we ought, but as we are able;
and we implore you mercifully to accept our praise and
thanksgiving, and, with your Word and Holy Spirit,
to bless us, your servants,
and
these your own gifts of bread and wine;
that we and all who share in the body and blood of your
Son may be filled with heavenly peace and joy,
and,
receiving the forgiveness of sin,
may be sanctified in soul and
body,
and
have our portion with all your saints.
All honor and glory are yours, O God, Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit,
in
your holy Church, now and forever.
Amen
Christ is in our midst.
By the power of the
Spirit,
we pray to his Father,
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
Jesus
said: ‘I am the bread of life.
Whoever
comes to me will never be hungry,
and
whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
Thanks be to God. John 6:35
AGNUS DEI (Lamb of God)
Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world; have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world; grant us peace.
Sit
DISTRIBUTION
Admission to the Sacrament is by
invitation of the Lord, presented through the Church to those who are baptized.
They may receive the Lord’s Body and Blood who
are baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
who commune in their home churches, and who believe that Jesus Christ,
crucified and risen, is truly present in, with, and under the forms of bread
and wine for the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation.
The
communicants will be invited forward one family unit at a time. Please do not
come forward until the pastor directs you to come forward, do not approach all
the way to the table until the pastor has retreated.
When the pastor says ‘The body of Christ,
given for you,’ eat the bread. When the pastor says, ‘The blood of Christ, shed
for you,’ drink the wine. Please take
the plate and the glass(es) and place them on the table that is indicated.
I Come, O Savior, to Your Table
Sung by the congregation.
for
weak and weary is my soul;
you,
Bread of life, alone are able
to
satisfy and make me whole.
Refrain
Lord,
may your body and your blood
be
for my soul the highest good!
2 Your
body, giv’n for me, O Savior;
your
blood, which once for me was shed:
these
are my life and strength forever,
by
them my hungry soul is fed. Refrain
3 With
you, Lord, I am now united;
you
live in me and I in you.
No
sorrow fills my soul; delighted
it
finds its deepest joy in you. Refrain
4 My
heart has now become your dwelling,
O
blessed, holy Trinity.
With
angels I, your praises telling,
shall
live in joy eternally. Refrain
Text: Friedrich C. Heyder, 1677-1754; tr. The
Lutheran Hymnal, 1941, alt.
After all have returned to their places, the congregation stands at the
direction of the pastor.
The body and
blood of our Lord Jesus Christ strengthen you and keep you in his grace.
Amen
your word has been fulfilled.
My own eyes have seen the
salvation
which you have prepared in the
sight of every people:
A light to reveal you to the
nations
and the glory of your people
Israel.
Glory to the Father, and to
the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is
now, and will be forever. Amen
Song of Simeon (Luke 2:29-32)
Pour
out upon us the Spirit of your love, O Lord, and unite the wills of those whom
you have fed with one heavenly food, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
SENDING
Benediction
The Lord
bless you and keep you.
The Lord
make his face to shine on you and be gracious to you.
The Lord
look upon you with favor and give you peace.
Amen
Dismissal
Go in peace. Serve the Lord.
Thanks be to God!
