St Stephen Lutheran Church Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: The Holy Communion on the First Sunday in Lent, 10:30 a.m.

March 6, 2022

The First Sunday in Lent

Jesus Carried Up to a Pinnacle of the Temple

THE FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT

The color purple, used for the vestments and paraments in Lent, symbolizes somberness and solemnity. Crosses and images of our Lord and the saints are veiled with purple cloth during Lent.

FIRST READING: The reading from Deuteronomy describes the offering of the first-fruits of the ground at harvest time. The Israelites are always to recall God, from whom their food comes, by offering the first portion as a sacrifice. The words they are to speak function as a kind of creed for them. They remember the works God has done for them and the covenant God made with them.

NEW TESTAMENT: In Romans 10, Paul defines the content of saving faith: to confess Jesus as Lord and believe in his resurrection. It is this faith that unites both Jewish and Gentile believers in Christ.

GOSPEL: The temptation of Jesus in the wilderness follows hard upon his baptism by John in the River Jordan. The wilderness journey of forty days echoes Noah’s forty days in the flood (Genesis 7:7-8); Moses’s forty days and forty nights upon Mount Sinai (Exodus 24:18); Israel’s forty-year journey in the wilderness (Deuteronomy 29:5), and Elijah’s forty-day journey to Mount Horeb (1 Kings 19:1-9).

The evil one tries to separate Jesus from the will of God the Father and his trust in him. In each case Jesus answers the evil one with words of Scripture. The devil leaves him ‘until an opportune time,’ the time of the agony in the garden and the Passion.

OPENING MUSIC

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God - J. S. Bach

God, My Lord, My Strength - J. M. Strobel

CONFESSION

(Although God’s forgiveness of sins is available to Christians at all times, it is not announced in public worship during the season of Lent, as a reminder that the entire season of Lent is one of repentance. Lent concludes and the Great Three Days begin with the pronouncement of forgiveness on Maundy Thursday.)

Stand

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen

To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul;

O my God, in you I trust.

You are the God of my salvation;

To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

In you I hope all the day long.

O my God, in you I trust.

Remember, Lord, your compassion and love,

for they are from everlasting.

To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul;

O my God, in you I trust.

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

Silence for reflection and self-examination.

I confess to God Almighty, before the whole company of heaven, and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned in thought, word, and deed by my fault, by my own fault, by my own most grievous fault; wherefore I pray God Almighty to have mercy on me, forgive me all my sins, and bring me to everlasting life. Amen

The almighty and merciful Lord grant you pardon, forgiveness,

and remission of all your sins. Amen

I confess to God Almighty, before the whole company of heaven,

and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned in thought,

word, and deed by my fault, by my own fault, by my own most

grievous fault; wherefore I pray God Almighty to have mercy on

me, forgive me all my sins, and bring me to everlasting life. Amen

The almighty and merciful Lord grant you pardon, forgiveness, and remission of all your sins. Amen

WHYMN God, My Lord, My Strength Green LBW 484

The text may not be reproduced here.

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.

KYRIE ELEISON

Your Heart, O God, Is Grieved Green LBW 96

The text may not be reproduced here.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

Lord God, you led your ancient people through the wilderness

and brought them to the promised land. Guide now the people

of your Church, that, following our Savior, we may walk through

the wilderness of this world toward the glory of the world to

come; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and

reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen

One does not live by bread alone.

Let us hear the Word of the Lord. Luke 4:4

Sit

FIRST READING Deuteronomy 26:1-11

¹When you have come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, and you possess it, and settle in it, ²you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place that the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his name. ³You shall go to the priest who is in office at that time, and say to him, “Today I declare to the Lord your God that I have come into the land that the Lord swore to our ancestors to give us.” ⁴When the priest takes the basket from your hand and sets it down before the altar of the Lord your God, ⁵you shall make this response before the Lord your God: “A wandering Aramean was my ancestor; he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous. ⁶When the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, by imposing hard labor on us, ⁷we cried to the Lord, the God of our ancestors; the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. ⁸The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders; ⁹and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. ¹⁰So now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground that you, O Lord, have given me.” You shall set it down before the Lord your God and bow down before the Lord your God. ¹¹Then you, together with the Levites and the aliens who reside among you, shall celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord your God has given to you and to your house.

The Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

PSALM 91:1-2, 9-16

¹ He who dwells in the shelter of | the Most High,*

abides under the shadow of | the Almighty.

² He shall say to the Lord, "You are my refuge | and my stronghold,*

my God in whom I | put my trust."

⁹ Because you have made the | Lord your refuge,*

and the Most High your | habitation,

¹⁰ there shall no evil hap- | pen to you,*

neither shall any plague come | near your dwelling.

¹¹ For he shall give his angels charge | over you,*

to keep you in | all your ways.

¹² They shall bear you | in their hands,*

lest you dash your foot a- | gainst a stone.

¹³ You shall tread upon the li- | on and the adder;*

you shall trample the young lion

and the serpent un- | der your feet.

¹⁴ Because he is bound to me in love, therefore will I de- | liver him;*

I will protect him, because he | knows my name.

¹⁵ He shall call upon me, and I will | answer him;*

I am with him in trouble;

I will rescue him and bring | him to honor.

¹⁶ With long life will I sat- | isfy him,*

and show him | my salvation. R

SECOND READING Romans 10:8b-13

^8b“The word is near you, on your lips and in your heart”
(that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); ⁹because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved. ¹¹The scripture says, “No one who believes in him will be put to shame.” ¹²For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. ¹³For, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

The Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Stand

VERSE Matthew 4:4 Setting by John W. Becker

One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the

mouth of God.

Gospel Luke 4:1-13

The Holy Gospel according to St. Luke.

¹Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, ²where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. ³The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” ⁴Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’ ”
⁵Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. ⁶And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. ⁷If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” ⁸Jesus answered him, “It is written,
‘Worship the Lord your God,
and serve only him.’ ”

⁹Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, ¹⁰for it is written,
‘He will command his angels concerning you,
to protect you,’
¹¹and
‘On their hands they will bear you up,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’ ”
¹²Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ” ¹³When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Sit

Sermon Pastor Frontz

Stand

W Hymn of the DaY

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God Green LBW 228

Choir/ Stanzas 2 & 3

The text may not be reproduced here.

CONFESSION OF FAITH

The pastor and people confess the faith of the Church in the words of the Nicene Creed.

X At the words ‘For us and for our salvation,’ and continuing through ‘and was made man,’ a solemn bow is appropriate to praise the incarnation of our Lord.

We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty,

maker of heaven and earth,

of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,

the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light,

true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father.

Through him all things were made.

X For us and for our salvation

he came down from heaven;

by the power of the Holy Spirit

he became incarnate from the virgin Mary, and was made man. X

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again

in accordance with the Scriptures;

he ascended into heaven

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son.

With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.

He has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come. Amen

PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH

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

Silence is kept.

Strengthen your Church, O God, and when we are tempted to abandon you for other gods, hold the temptation, passion, and cross of Jesus before our eyes. Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Renew our congregation in this Lenten season. Help us to return to you, confessing you with our lips, believing you in our hearts, and bringing you the first fruits of the reward of our labor. Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Bring relief to all who are afflicted by war, terror, scarcity, injustice, or poverty of body, mind, and spirit. Bless our nation and our leaders, and guide all who hold responsibility for others.

The pastor names the nations and peoples in special need.

Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

Sustain the sick, comfort the grieving, and bless the dying. Renew the faith of those who cannot find the way home to you. Be present to all whom we name before you.

The pastor reads the names of those people for whom we have special concern.

Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

In our participation at your altar, empower us in our forty-day journey to the cross. With all the saints who strove to live their lives in you, bring us to the day when we rejoice in your bountiful gifts to us. Lord, have mercy.

Lord, have mercy.

The pastor concludes the prayers:

Into your hands, Father, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in your steadfast love, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen

Peace

Since we are justified by faith,

we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

who has given us access to his grace.

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 Ezekiel 18:30-32 Setting by Kevin Norris

Repent and turn from all your sins, lest iniquity be your ruin. Cast away

from you all the sins which you have committed against me, and get

yourself a new heart and a new spirit. For I have no pleasure in the

death of anyone, says the Lord God of hosts, so turn to me and live.

PRAYER OF PREPARATION

We do not presume to come to your table, O Lord,

trusting in our own righteousness,

but in your manifold and great mercies.

We are not worthy to gather up the crumbs under your table.

But you are the same Lord whose property is always to have mercy.

Grant us, therefore, gracious Lord,

so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ,

and so to drink his blood,

that we may evermore dwell in him and he in us.

GREAT THANKSGIVING

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 Christ our Lord.

In the observance of these forty days you call us in your mercy to repentance and faith so that we may be cleansed from all our faults. In this way we shall receive the mystery of our salvation, and, restored to your kingdom of light, we shall give you joyful thanks and praise.

And so, with the Church on earth and the hosts of heaven, we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

Holy, holy, holy LORD, God of power and might!

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!

(Isaiah 6:3, Matthew 21:9)

The pastor leads the people in praying the Eucharistic canon:

Blessed are you, O Lord our God.

You created us in your image;

and in the mystery of your great love for us

you sent your only Son, Jesus Christ,

born of Mary by the power of the Spirit.

Led by that Spirit he was tempted as we are tempted;

He proclaimed your forgiveness to sinners;

he loved even his enemies.

Despised and rejected,

he bore the alienation of the world

as he stretched out his arms on the cross;

and by this all-sufficient sacrifice

he has drawn all people to himself,

giving his life as a ransom for many.

As we gather in his name and celebrate his testament,

send your Spirit upon us

and upon these gifts of bread and wine,

that they may be for us

the very body and blood of your Son,

Christ Jesus, redeemer of the world.

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.

Let us proclaim the mystery of faith:

Christ has died.

Christ is risen.

Christ will come again.

Blessed are you, O Lord our God.

By your Son's life-giving passion and death,

and by His resurrection and ascension into glory,

our Lord Jesus continually intercedes for us

and for all he has claimed as his own.

As we now share together

this Bread of Life and this Cup of Salvation,

unite us with all your faithful people

in the forgiveness of sins,

and bring us, at length, to that eternal celebration of life

at the Lamb's high feast.

Through him, with him, in him,

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

all honor and glory is yours,

almighty Father, now and forever. Amen

In the presence of Christ, we pray to his Father using the words he gave us.

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 Matthew 6:9-15

Lord, come to us and cleanse us,

come to us and heal us,

come to us and strengthen us,

and grant that, having received you,

we may never be separated from you,

but continue yours forever.

We adore Christ, present in bread and wine.

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.

WDISTRIBUTION HYMNS

Choir God Loved the World

Text/tr. August Crull; Music/ Melchoir Vulpius

Please follow text at Green LBW 292 as the choir sings.

God Loved the World

1 God loved the world so that he gave

his only Son, the lost to save,

that all who would in him believe

should everlasting life receive.

2 Christ Jesus is the ground of faith,

who was made flesh and suffered death;

all who confide in Christ alone

are built on this chief cornerstone.

3 If you are sick, if death is near,

this truth your troubled heart can cheer;

Christ Jesus saves your soul from death;

that is the firmest ground of faith.

4 Be of good cheer, for God’s own Son

forgives all sins which you have done,

and justified by Jesus’ blood,

your baptism grants the highest good.

Text: Gesangbuch, Bollhagen, 1791; tr. August Crull, 1846-1923, alt.

Jesus, Still Lead On Green LBW 341

1 Jesus, still lead on,

till our rest be won;

and, although the way be cheerless,

we will follow, calm and fearless;

guide us by your hand

to our Father’s land.

2 If the way be drear,

if the foe be near,

let no faithless fears o’ertake us,

let not faith and hope forsake us;

safely past the foe

to our home we go.

3 When we seek relief

from a long-felt grief,

when temptations come alluring

make us patient and enduring;

show us that bright shore

where we weep no more.

4 Jesus, still lead on,

till our rest be won;

heav’nly leader, still direct us,

still support, console, protect us,

till we safely stand

in our Father’s land.

Text: Nicolaus L. von Zinzendorf, 1700-1760; tr. Jane L. Borthwick, 1813-1897, alt.

When all have received, 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

WPOST-COMMUNION HYMN

Strengthen for Service, Lord Green LBW 218

1 Strengthen for service, Lord, the hands

that holy things have taken;

and let the ears that heard your Word

to falsehood never waken.

2 The tongues that sang your holy name

now purge of all deception;

keep bright the eyes that saw your love

and sharpen their perception.

3 And may the feet that walked your courts

be never lured to wander;

but lead the faithful nourished here

to journey on in splendor.

Text: Syriac Liturgy of Malabar; tr. The English Hymnal, 1906, adapt.

O Lord, you have called us to be your witnesses.

Cleanse us from all unbelief and sloth

and fill us with hope and zeal,

that we may do your work,

and bear your cross,

and bide your time,

and see your glory.

BENEDICTION

Almighty God, Father, X Son, and Holy Spirit,

bless you now and forever.

Amen

WCLOSING HYMN

O Lord, Throughout These Forty Days Green LBW 99

The text may not be reproduced here.

DISMISSAL

Go in peace. Serve the Lord.

Thanks be to God!

THIS WEEK FOR THE FAITH FAMILY

Sun/ Mar 6 Choir rehearsal 9:30 AM

WORSHIP 10:30 AM

Prayer at the Close of the Day (livestream) 9:30 PM

Mon/ Mar 7 Morning Prayer (livestream) 8:30 AM

Wed/ Mar 9 Evening Prayer, 6:30 PM, in person and livestream

Thu/Mar 10 ZOOM Bible Study, 7:30 PM, livestream

Fri/ Mar 11 Morning Prayer (livestream) 8:30 AM

Sat/ Mar 12 NA Meeting 11 AM

WORSHIP 6:30 PM

Sun/ Mar 13 Choir rehearsal 9:30 AM

WORSHIP 10:30 AM

Prayer at the Close of the Day (livestream) 9:30 PM

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #20540.

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. All rights reserved.

Additional liturgical material from Common Worship: Times and Seasons,

and Foretaste of the Feast to Come: Devotions on Holy Communion, by Philip H. Pfatteicher,

Tissot, James, 1836-1902. Jesus Carried up to a Pinnacle of the Temple, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=54302 [retrieved February 28, 2022]. Original source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brooklyn_Museum_-_Jesus_Carried_up_to_a_Pinnacle_of_the_Temple_(J%C3%A9sus_port%C3%A9_sur_le_pinacle_du_Temple)_-_James_Tissot_-_overall.jpg.

Agnus Day appears with the permission of www.agnusday.org

Sunday, March 6, 2022

The Holy Communion on the First Sunday in Lent, 10:30 a.m.