Second Sunday After Pentecost | Scholarship Recognition Sunday
St. Peter’s Evangelical Lutheran Church
PENTECOST 2
Scholarship Recognition Sunday
Juneteenth / Emancipation Day
FATHER’S DAY
06-19-2022 10:00AM Hybrid Worship
+ We Seek and Rejoice in the Spirit +
THE OPENING RITE:
L Let us gather in the grace of our Lord (+) Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, for there is no better place for our hearts and minds and spirits to be.
C We gather physically in this sanctuary and also from locations near and far – together as God’s people – to celebrate and to be transformed, to be and to become THE CHURCH.
L We confess that we are sometimes frightened and terrorized by the horrific and demonic nature of this world.
Many are confused and conflicted,
many are troubled and tormented,
many are depressed and distraught,
many are diseased by “crazy” thoughts and “crazy” actions,
and many are possessed by delusion and terrorized by death.
C Sometimes we are so afraid and anxious about what might happen to us from the outside.
And sometimes we are afflicted on the inside by bodies, minds, and spirits that don’t feel right.
O Lord, bring healing and restoration, forgiveness and grace to our world and to our lives. Amen.
L The Lord Jesus Christ is one who doesn’t give up on us! He still comes and stands beside us when we are troubled…he still reaches out to break the chains that bind up our lives… he still chases away the demons that torment us…he still restores wholeness to our broken lives… he still brings visions to our distraught minds… and he still offers new abundant, eternal life. Let us praise him today!
C And let all of us – FATHER, MAN, WOMAN, TEEN, CHILD – dedicate his or her life to be “more like Jesus” in relating to God and relating to others!
OPENING SONG: “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” Brown #133
PRAYER OF THE DAY:
Let us pray.
Almighty God, here we are, flesh and blood, spirit and life – created, redeemed, and empowered by your love. Today we bring you the cries of a tormented world and our own troubled lives. Set us free from the chains that bind us, defend us from evil, and empower us to tell others your good news. May we heal the hurt and liberate the oppressed in the tender, strong, saving name of Jesus Christ! Amen.
+ We Rejoice in God’s Saving Word +
FIRST READING: ISAIAH 65:1-9 [The detour of distraction: self-absorption and chasing other gods lead to a dead end.]
65:1 I was ready to be sought out by those who did not ask, to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here I am, here I am,” to a nation that did not call on my name.
65:2 I held out my hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices;
65:3 a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and offering incense on bricks;
65:4 who sit inside tombs, and spend the night in secret places; who eat swine’s flesh, with broth of abominable things in their vessels;
65:5 who say, “Keep to yourself, do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.” These are a smoke in my nostrils, a fire that burns all day long.
65:6 See, it is written before me: I will not keep silent, but I will repay; I will indeed repay into their laps
65:7 their iniquities and their ancestors’ iniquities together, says the LORD; because they offered incense on the mountains and reviled me on the hills, I will measure into their laps full payment for their actions.
65:8 Thus says the LORD: As the wine is found in the cluster, and they say, “Do not destroy it, for there is a blessing in it,” so I will do for my servants’ sake, and not destroy them all.
65:9 I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah inheritors of my mountains; my chosen shall inherit it, and my servants shall settle there.
DANCE SELECTION: “Juneteenth” by Sounds of Blackness Timyk Hillsman, dancer
SECOND READING: GALATIANS 3:23-29 [The danger of distinction: Don’t let differences divide Christ’s community.]
3:23 Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed.
3:24 Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith.
3:25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian,
3:26 for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith.
3:27 As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
3:28 There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.
3:29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.
SCHOLARSHIP RECOGNITION… We celebrate those who are graduating from various levels of schooling!
GOSPEL VERSE:
“Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.
Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.
Break me, melt me, mold me, fill me.
Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me.”
HOLY GOSPEL: LUKE 8:26-39 [The defeat of demons: God’s love brings healing.]
8:26 Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.
8:27 As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs.
8:28 When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me”–
8:29 for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.)
8:30 Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him.
8:31 They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss.
8:32 Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission.
8:33 Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.
8:34 When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country.
8:35 Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid.
8:36 Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed.
8:37 Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned.
8:38 The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying,
8:39 “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.
THE SERMON: Pastor John Gottschall
SONG SELECTION
AN AFFIRMATION OF OUR FAITH:
We confess our FAITH in the God who has given us love and new life…
I trust in God who has made me his own. I know that God loves me. To God I am as precious as his own Son, Jesus Christ, who lived and died in obedience to his Father’s will. Jesus suffered our pain, and through his suffering and death has brought us into fellowship with God.
I believe that God through his Spirit will give me strength when I am oppressed and weary… will give me love when I am afraid and lonely… and will guide his Church to make people free at last.
I believe that God lives in the fellowship of those who trust him, and that God wants all people to be brought into that fellowship.
I believe that nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Living in hope and trust, I will deny myself, take up my cross, and walk the Jesus walk of faithful servant love.
Amen.
THE PRAYERS… We pray for NEW LIFE in the Spirit and for the MISSION of the Church to the world!
THE OFFERING: Energized by the Holy Spirit, we eagerly seek to spread the JOY OF JESUS here, there, and all over!
SONG SELECTION
OFFERING SONG:
“Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of his Spirit, washed in his blood.
THIS IS MY STORY, THIS IS MY SONG,
PRAISING MY SAVIOR ALL THE DAY LONG! [sing the chorus 2 times]
We are God’s people, we are Christ’s Church, called by God’s Spirit into the world.
We have God’s power from heaven above, we’ll share God’s justice, mercy and love!”
OFFERING PRAYER:
O Lord our God, if your Spirit is alive within us, then stretch our time and abilities, our money and our mouths, all that we are and all that we have, to testify to your amazing grace in Jesus Christ. Someone somewhere is in need of your Good News. Amen.
THE PREFACE AND THE EUCHARISTIC WORDS:
L The Lord be with you. C And also with you.
L Lift up your hearts! C We lift them up in love for God!
L Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. C It is right to give God our thanks and praise.
L Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful… C … and set us on fire with your love! Alleluia!
THE EUCHARISTIC WORDS by the Celebrant, who recalls and re-enacts Jesus’ Holy Meal.
THE LORD’S PRAYER (spoken)
COMMUNION AND BLESSINGS… All believers in Jesus Christ are welcome at the Lord’s Table! We will have “continuous distribution” with wafers and wine or grape juice. Praise the Lord for this community meal that renews our spirits, powers our faith, and reminds us of the future heavenly banquet that awaits us!
COMMUNION SONG: “Let Us Break Bread Together”
- Let us break bread together on our knees.
Let us break bread together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.
- Let us drink wine together on our knees…
- Let us praise God together on our knees…
COMMUNION SONG: “Sweet, Sweet Spirit”
- There’s a sweet, sweet Spirit in this place, and I know that it’s the Spirit of the Lord.
There are sweet expressions on each face, and I know they feel the presence of the Lord.
SWEET HOLY SPIRIT, SWEET HEAVENLY DOVE,
STAY RIGHT HERE WITH US, FILLING US WITH YOUR LOVE.
AND FOR THESE BLESSINGS WE LIFT OUR HEARTS IN PRAISE;
WITHOUT A DOUBT WE’LL KNOW THAT WE HAVE BEEN REVIVED
WHEN WE SHALL LEAVE THIS PLACE!
- There are blessings you cannot receive till you know God in his fullness and believe.
You’re the one to profit when you say, “I am going to walk with Jesus all the way!”
THE COMMUNION BLESSING by the Celebrant after all have communed.
POST-COMMUNION PRAYER by the Communion Assistant.
+ We Rejoice in Our Mission +
THE BENEDICTION by the Pastor… We are sent forth to live faithfully and to love fervently!
CLOSING SONG: “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms” Brown #220
Hallelujah, glory to God,
for the blessing of
a return to the Sanctuary…
and for the blessing of
shared worship near and far!
Lord, help me
to close the door to hate
and open the door to love
all over the face
of this earth!