Seventh Sunday of Easter – May16, 2021

Today’s Theme for Worship: Our ascended Lord is in heaven, where he sits at the Father’s right hand and prays for his Church.

Order of Service: Service of Word and Sacrament

Opening Hymn: 172 Up through Endless Ranks of Angels

1 Up through endless ranks of angels, Cries of triumph in his ears,

To his heav’nly throne ascending, Having vanquished all their fears,

Christ looks down upon the faithful, Leaving them in happy tears.

2 Death destroying, life restoring, Proven equal to our need,

Now for us before the Father As our brother intercede;

Flesh that for the world was wounded, Living, for the wounded plead!

3 To our lives of wanton wand’ring Send your promised Spirit-guide;

Through our lives of fear and failure With your pow’r and love abide;

Welcome us, as you were welcomed, To an endless Eastertide.

4 Alleluia, alleluia! Oh, to breathe the Spirit’s grace!

Alleluia, alleluia! Oh, to see the Father’s face!

Alleluia, alleluia! Oh, to feel the Son’s embrace!

Order of Service: Service of Word and Sacrament

P: The grace of our Lord + Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you.

C: And also with you.

Confession of Sins

P: God invites us to come into his presence and worship him with humble and penitent hearts. Therefore, let us acknowledge our sinfulness and ask him to forgive us.

C: Holy and merciful Father, I confess that I am by nature sinful, and that I have disobeyed you in my thoughts, words, and actions. I have done what is evil and failed to do what is good. For this I deserve your punishment both now and in eternity. But I am truly sorry for my sins, and trusting in my Savior Jesus Christ, I pray: Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.

P: God, our heavenly Father, has been merciful to us and has given his only Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Therefore, as a called servant of Christ and by his authority, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.

C: Amen.

Lord, Have Mercy

P: For all that we need in life and for the wisdom to use all your gifts with gratitude and joy, hear our prayer, O Lord.

C: ♬ Lord, have mer-cy.

P: For the steadfast assurance that nothing can separate us from your love and for the courage to stand firm against the assaults of Satan and every evil, hear our prayer, O Christ.

C: ♬ Christ, have mer-cy.

P: For the well-being of your holy Church in all the world and for those who offer here their worship and praise, hear our prayer, O Lord.

C: ♬ Lord, have mer-cy.

P: Merciful God, maker and preserver of life, uphold us by your power and keep us in your tender care:

C: ♬ A-men.

P: The works of the Lord are great and glorious; his name is worthy of praise.

♬ O Lord, Our Lord

O Lord, our Lord, how glo-rious is your name in all the earth.

Al-might-y God, mer-ci-ful Father,

you crown our life with your love.

You take a-way our sin; you com-fort our spir-it;

you make us pure and ho-ly in your sight.

You did not spare your on-ly Son, but gave him up for us all.

O Lord, our Lord, how glo-rious is your name in all the earth.

O Son of God, e-ter-nal Word of the Fa-ther,

you came to live with us;

you made your Fa-ther known;

you washed us from our sins in your own blood.

You are the King of glo-ry; you are the Lord!

O Lord, our Lord, how glo-rious is your name in all the earth.

Prayer of the Day

P: Let us Pray.

Almighty God, your Son, our Savior was taken up in glory and intercedes for us at your right hand. Through your living and abiding Word give us hearts to know him still and faith to follow where he has gone; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. C: ♬ A-men.

First Lesson: Acts 1:15-26

The eleven disciples select Matthias as a replacement for Judas.

¹⁵In those days, when the group there numbered about 120 people, Peter stood up among the brothers and said, ¹⁶“Gentlemen, brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of David about Judas, who became a guide for those who arrested Jesus. ¹⁷Judas was counted as one of us and was given a share in this ministry.

¹⁸“Now this man acquired a field with what he was paid for his wicked act. When he fell headfirst, his middle burst open, and all his intestines spilled out. ¹⁹This became known to all the residents of Jerusalem, and so in their own language that field was called Akeldema, which means Field of Blood. ²⁰Indeed, it is written in the book of Psalms:

May his residence be deserted.

Let there be no one dwelling in it.

And,

let someone else take his position.

²¹“Therefore it is necessary that one of the men who accompanied us during the entire time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, ²²beginning from his baptism by John until the day Jesus was taken up from us, become a witness with us of his resurrection.”

²³They proposed two: Joseph called Barsabbas (who was also called Justus) and Matthias. ²⁴Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen ²⁵to take the place in this apostolic ministry from which Judas turned away to go to his own place.”

²⁶Then they assigned lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias. So he was counted with the eleven apostles.

Psalm of the Day – Psalm 8

Refrain

I will praise your name forever, my King and my God.

O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!*

You have set your glory above the heavens.

When I consider your heavens,*

the work of your fingers,

what is man that you are mindful of him,*

the Son of Man that you care for him?

Refrain

I will praise your name forever, my King and my God.

You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings*

and crowned him with glory and honor.

You made him ruler over the works of your hands;*

you put everything under his feet.

Glory be 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.

Refrain

I will praise your name forever, my King and my God.

Second Lesson: 1 John 4:13-21
We bear witness to, rely on, and live in the God who is love.

¹³This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. ¹⁴We have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. ¹⁵If anyone confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him and he in God. ¹⁶We also have come to know and trust the love that God has for us.

God is love. Whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him. ¹⁷In this way his love has been brought to its goal among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are just like Jesus. ¹⁸There is no fear in love, but complete love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who continues to be afraid has not been brought to the goal in love.

¹⁹We love because he first loved us. ²⁰If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar. For how can anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, love God, whom he has not seen? ²¹This then is the command we have from him: The one who loves God should also love his brother.

Verse:
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

These words are written that we may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Gospel Lesson: John 17:11b-19

Our High Priest prays that the Father would protect his disciples, sanctify them and keep them.
“Holy Father, protect them by your name, which you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. ¹²While I was with them, I kept those you gave me safe in your name. I protected them and not one of them was destroyed, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture might be fulfilled.

¹³“But now I am coming to you, and I am saying these things in the world, so that they may be filled with my joy. ¹⁴I have given them your word. The world hated them, because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. ¹⁵I am not asking that you take them out of the world, but that you protect them from the Evil One. ¹⁶They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.

¹⁷“Sanctify them by the truth. Your word is truth. ¹⁸As you sent me into the world, I also sent them into the world. ¹⁹I sanctify myself for them, so they also may be sanctified by the truth.”

Hymn of the Day: 359 Jesus, My Great High Priest

1 Jesus, my great High Priest, Offered his blood and died;

My guilty conscience seeks No sacrifice beside.

His pow’rful blood did once atone,

And now it pleads before the throne.

2 To Christ, my substitute, Will I commit my cause;

He answers and fulfills His Father’s broken laws.

Behold my soul at freedom set-

My Jesus paid the dreadful debt!

3 My advocate appears For my defense on high;

A gracious Father hears And lays his thunder by.

Not all that hell or sin can say

Shall turn his heart, his love, away.

4 Should all the hosts of death And pow'rs of hell unknown

Put their most dreadful forms Of rage and mischief on,

I shall be safe, for Christ displays

Superior pow’r and guardian grace.

Text: Isaac Watts, 1674-1748, abr., alt.

Sermon

Nicene Creed

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. For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and became fully human. 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, who in unity with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy Christian 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.

Offering

Electronic Giving! You can give your offerings from your smartphone with the GivePlusChurch app, which can be downloaded for free at Google Play or the App Store. You can also give at holytrinitylutheranwyoming.com by clicking the Offerings link at the top of the page or scan the QR code below. If you have any questions about any of these options, please contact Dave Conrad at dconrad765@gmail.com or 616-406-7172

Prayer of the Church

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.

The Sacrament

P: The Lord be with you.

C: ♬ And also with you.

P: Lift up your hearts.

C: ♬ We lift them up to the Lord.

P: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

C: ♬ It is right to give him thanks and praise.

P: Praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In love he has blessed us with every spiritual blessing. He raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms and placed all things under his feet for the benefit of the Church. Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ. To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and thanks and honor and glory for ever and ever.

♬ Holy, Holy, Holy

Ho-ly, ho-ly, ho-ly is the Lord of hosts.

The whole earth is full of your glo-ry.

You are my God, and I will ex-alt you.

I will give you thanks, for you have be-come my sal-va-tion.

Ho-ly, ho-ly, ho-ly is the Lord of hosts.

The whole earth is full of your glo-ry.

Words of Institution

P: Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night he was betrayed, took bread; and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying “Take and eat; this is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

Then he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

P: The peace of the Lord be with you always.

C: ♬ A-men.

♬ O Christ, Lamb Of God

O Christ, Lamb of God,

you take a-way the sin of the world;

have mer-cy on us.

O Christ, Lamb of God,

you take a-way the sin of the world;

have mer-cy on us.

O Christ, Lamb of God,

you take a-way the sin of the world;

grant us your peace.

A-men.

Distribution Hymn: 205 O Lord, Look Down from Heaven

1 O Lord, look down from heav’n, behold, And let your pity waken.

How few are we within your fold, Your saints by all forsaken;

True faith seems quenched on ev’ry hand; Your Word is not allowed to stand.

Dark times have us o’ertaken.

2 O God, root out all heresy, And of false teachers rid us

Who proudly say, “Now where is he Who shall our speech forbid us?

By right or might we shall prevail; What we determine cannot fail;

We want no lord and master!”

3 Therefore said God, “I must arise-The poor my help are needing.

To me ascend my people’s cries, And I have heard their pleading.

For them my saving Word shall fight And fearlessly and sharply smite,

The poor with might defending.”

4 Defend your truth, O God, and stay This evil generation,

And from the error of its way Keep your own congregation.

The wicked ev’rywhere abound And would your little flock confound,

But you are our salvation!

Text: Martin Luther, 1483-1546, abr.; tr. The Lutheran Hymnal, St. Louis, 1941, alt.

Thank the Lord

Thank the Lord and sing his praise.

Tell ev-'ry-one what he has done.

Let all who seek the Lord re-joice

And proud-ly bear his name.

He re-news his prom-is-es and leads his peo-ple forth

in joy with shouts of thanks-giv-ing.

Al-le-lu-ia! Al-le-lu-ia!

Prayer

P: Hear the prayer of your people, O Lord, that the lips which have praised you here may glorify you in the world, that the eyes which have seen the coming of your Son may long for his coming again, and that all who have received in his true body and blood the pledge of your forgiveness may be restored to live a new and holy life, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

C: A-men.

Blessing

M: Brothers and sisters, go in peace. Live in harmony with one another. Serve the Lord with gladness.

The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you.

The Lord look on you with favor and give you peace.

C: (sing) Amen. Amen. Amen.

Closing Hymn: 411 What a Friend We Have in Jesus

1 What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear!

What a privilege to carry Ev’rything to God in prayer!

Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh, what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry Ev’rything to God in prayer!

2 Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged-Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful Who will all our sorrows share?

Jesus knows our ev’ry weakness-Take it to the Lord in prayer.

3 Are we weak and heavy laden, Cumbered with a load of care?

Precious Savior, still our refuge-Take it to the Lord in prayer.

Do your friends despise, forsake you? Take it to the Lord in prayer.

In his arms he’ll take and shield you; You will find a solace there.

Text: Joseph M. Scriven, 1820-86, alt.