Third Sunday of Easter – Confirmation Sunday May 1, 2022
Today’s
Theme for Worship:
Sight marches victorious over blindness. Spiritual blindness can take many different forms,
such as hostile opposition to Jesus or confusion about who Jesus really is.
Easter has the power to replace spiritual blindness with sight.
Opening Hymn: 697 May We Your Precepts, Lord, Fulfill
1 May we your precepts, Lord, fulfill
and do on earth our Father’s will
as angels do above;
still walk in Christ, the living way,
with all your children, and obey
the law of Christian love.
2 So may we join your name to bless,
your grace adore, your pow’r
confess,
to flee from sin and strife.
One is our calling, one our name,
the end of all our hopes the same:
a glorious crown of life.
3 Spirit of life, of love, and peace,
unite our hearts, our joy increase,
your gracious help supply.
To each of us the blessing give
in Christian fellowship to live,
in joyful hope to die.
Text: Edward Osler, 1789–1863, alt.
Text: Public domain
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.
O God, by the humiliation of your Son, you lifted up this fallen world from the despair of death. By
his resurrection to life, grant your faithful people gladness of heart and the
hope of eternal joys; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and
reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C: ♬ Amen.
Hymn of Praise 513 In You Is Gladness
1
In you is gladness
amid all sadness,
Jesus, sunshine of my heart.
By you are given
the gifts of heaven,
you the true Redeemer are.
Our souls are waking,
our bonds are breaking;
who trusts you surely
has built securely
and stands forever. Alleluia!
Our hearts are pining
to see your shining,
dying or living
to you are clinging
now and forever. Alleluia!
2
If he is ours,
we fear no powers,
not of earth or sin or death.
He sees and blesses
in worst distresses;
he can change them with a breath.
Wherefore the story
tell of his glory
with hearts and voices;
all heav’n
rejoices
in him forever. Alleluia!
We shout for gladness,
win over sadness,
love him and praise him
and still shall raise him
glad hymns forever. Alleluia!
Text: tr. Catherine Winkworth, 1827–1878, alt.; Johann Lindemann, 1549–1631
Text: Public domain
Second
Reading: Revelation 5:11–14
11And I
looked, and I heard the voice of many angels who were around the throne and
around the living creatures and the elders. Their number was ten thousand times
ten thousand, and thousands upon thousands. 12With a loud voice they
were saying:
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive
power and riches and
wisdom and strength and
honor and glory and blessing.
13I also
heard every creature that is in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on
the sea, and all that is in them, saying:
To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and
ever.
14The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders
bowed down and worshipped.
Verse
P:
Christ
Jesus has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through
the gospel.
Gospel Lesson: John
21:1–14
After this, Jesus showed himself again to the
disciples at the Sea of Tiberias. This is how he showed himself: 2Simon
Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of
Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3Simon Peter said to
them, “I’m going fishing.”
They replied, “We’ll go with you.”
They went out and got into the boat, but that night
they caught nothing. 4Early in the morning, Jesus was standing on
the shore, but the disciples did not know it was Jesus.
5Jesus called
to them, “Boys, don’t you have any fish?”
“No!” they answered.
6He told
them, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” So they cast the net out. Then they were not able to haul it
in because of the large number of fish.
7The
disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter
heard, “It is the Lord!” he tied his outer garment around him (for he had taken
it off) and jumped into the sea. 8But the other disciples came in
the little boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from
shore, about one hundred yards. 9When they stepped out on land, they
saw some bread and a charcoal fire with fish on it. 10Jesus said to
them, “Bring some of the fish you just caught.”
11So Simon
Peter climbed aboard and hauled the net to land, full of large fish, 153 of
them. Yet even with so many, the net was not torn.
12Jesus
said to them, “Come, eat breakfast.”
None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?”
because they knew it was the Lord.
13Jesus came, took the bread, and gave it to them, and also the fish. 14This was now the third time
Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Hymn of the Day: 459 Christ the Lord Is Risen Again
1 Christ the Lord is ris’n
again;
Christ has broken death’s strong chain.
Hark, the angels shout for joy,
singing evermore on high:
Hallelujah!
2 He who gave for us his life,
who for us endured the strife,
is our Paschal Lamb today.
We too sing for joy and say:
Hallelujah!
3 He who bore all pain and loss
comfortless upon the cross
lives in glory now on high,
pleads for us, and hears our cry:
Hallelujah!
4 He whose path no records tell
has descended into hell;
he the strong man armed has bound
and in highest heav’n is crowned.
Hallelujah!
5 He who slumbered in the grave
is exalted now to save;
now through Christendom it rings
that the Lamb is King of kings.
Hallelujah!
6 Now he bids us tell abroad
how the lost may be restored,
how the penitent forgiv’n,
how we, too, may enter heav’n.
Hallelujah!
Text: tr. Catherine Winkworth, 1827–1878, alt.; Michael Weisse, c. 1480–1534, abr.
Text: Public domain
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
You can give your offerings from your smartphone with
the new Vanco Mobile 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. If you have any
questions about any of these options, please contact Dave Vogel at financialsecretary@holytrinity-wels.net or 616-808-6320.
Offering Prayer
My dear young friends, when you
were baptized, your gracious Lord forgave all your sins and covered you with
the robe of Christ’s righteousness. Through water and Word
he created faith in your hearts and adopted you into the family of believers.
As you matured and heard and studied the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit
enlightened your minds and preserved you as children of God.
You have expressed the desire to
confess the truths you believe before your Savior, your family and friends, and
this congregation. You are ready to say with St. Paul, “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” You have learned to examine your
thoughts, words, and actions in the light of God’s law, and you have
experienced the comfort of forgiveness in the Savior’s gospel. With this
preparation you are eager to receive the Savior’s body and blood in the
sacrament.
As we worship with you on this day,
we are filled with joy as we see how the Lord has grown your faith and love. We
are bringing our prayers to the Savior’s throne of grace and imploring him to
keep you faithful to him and his Word until you join us and all believers in
the glories of heaven.
I now ask each of you:
Are you ready and willing to
confess your faith before the triune God and those who are worshiping with you
today?
I
am.
Do you believe in God the Father?
Yes,
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth.
Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the
Son of God?
Yes,
I believe in Jesus Christ, his 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 into hell.
The
third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven
and
is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.
From there he will come to judge
the living and the dead.
Do you believe in God the Holy
Spirit?
Yes,
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the
holy Christian Church,
the
communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the
resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Do you reject the devil along with
all his lies and empty promises?
I do
reject him.
Do you believe that all the books
of the Bible are the inspired and inerrant Word of God?
I
do.
Do you believe that the teachings
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, as you have learned to know them from
Luther’s Small Catechism, are faithful and true to the Word of God?
I
do.
Is it your sincere prayer and
desire to remain faithful to your Lord Jesus and his Word all the days of your
life?
Yes,
and I ask God to help me.
Is it your sincere prayer and
desire to live a life that pleases God, to value his Word and sacraments, and
to witness to your Savior wherever you go?
Yes,
and I ask God to help me.
Friends in Christ, the Word of God
urges us to pray for one another and especially for the youth of the church. On
this special day, it is fitting that we bring our prayers before God, firmly
believing that he alone is able to strengthen us by
the power of the Holy Spirit and keep us faithful to the Savior until we die.
Let us pray.
Gracious Father, in Holy Baptism
you created faith in the hearts of these young people and gave them a new birth
as members of your family. Help them remember their baptisms every day and find
comfort in your promise that you will never leave them or forsake them. Lord,
in your mercy,
hear
our prayer.
Give them strength to put down and
drown the sinful nature that lives within them so that each day their faith may
triumph in their living and loving and in their words and actions. Lord, in
your mercy,
hear
our prayer.
Lead them to see and believe that
in the word of the gospel they find forgiveness for their sins and relief for
their guilt. Use the remembrance of your commandments to drive them to the
comfort of the gospel and then to guide them as they live for you and others.
Lord, in your mercy,
hear
our prayer.
Protect them from Satan when he
tempts them to be careless with your Word and sacrament, to make plans for this
life and not for the life to come, or to find popular theories more appealing
than your truth. Lord, in your mercy,
hear
our prayer.
Empower them by the gospel of your
Son to live in their world with kindness, humility, and patience that others
may see their good works and glorify their Father in heaven. Lord, in your
mercy,
hear
our prayer.
Help us provide fitting examples of
faithfulness to your Word and sacraments. Lead us to encourage and admonish
them in wisdom and love even after they have left our homes and made new homes
for themselves. Lord, in your mercy,
hear
our prayer.
When the end comes and we all stand
before the judgment seat of Christ, have compassion on us despite our sins and
accept us as eternal dwellers in your royal rooms, through the merits of Jesus
our Savior, who became sin for us so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God. Lord, in your mercy,
hear
our prayer.
Lord’s Prayer
Our
Father in heaven,
hallowed
be your name,
your
kingdom come,
your
will be done
on
earth as in heaven.
Give
us today our daily bread.
Forgive
us our sins,
as
we forgive those
who
sin against us.
Lead
us not into temptation,
but
deliver us from evil.
For
the kingdom, the power,
and
the glory are yours
now
and forever. Amen.
I now invite each of you to come
forward to receive a blessing from the Lord and a word of encouragement from
the Scriptures.
Gracyn Adele Mei Traub - God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
give you his Holy Spirit, the Spirit of wisdom and knowledge, of grace and
prayer, of power and strength, of sanctification and the fear of God.
Amber Rae Woolf - Our Lord Jesus
Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us
eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your heart
and strengthen you in every good deed and word.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
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. When the time had
fully come, he sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem
those under the law, that we might receive the full rights of sons..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: 704 Let Us Ever Walk with Jesus
1 Let us ever walk with Jesus,
follow his example pure,
flee the world which would deceive us
and to sin our souls
allure.
Ever in his footsteps treading,
body here, yet soul above,
full of faith and hope and love,
let us do the Father’s bidding.
Faithful Lord, abide with me;
Savior, lead; I follow thee.
2 Let us suffer here with Jesus,
to his image e’er conform;
heaven’s glory soon will please us,
sunshine follow
on the storm.
Though we sow in tears of sorrow,
we shall reap in heav’nly
joy,
and the fears that now annoy
shall be laughter on the morrow.
Christ, I suffer here with thee;
there, O share thy joy with me.
3 Let us also die with Jesus;
his death from the second death,
from our soul’s destruction, frees us,
quickens us with life’s glad breath.
Let us mortify, while living,
flesh and blood and die to sin,
and the grave that shuts us in
shall but prove the gate to heaven.
Jesus, here I die to thee,
there to live eternally.
4 Let us gladly live with Jesus;
since he’s risen from the dead,
death and grave must soon release us.
Jesus, thou art now our head.
We are truly thine own members,
where thou livest,
there live we;
take and own us constantly,
faithful Friend, as thy dear brethren.
Jesus, here I live to thee,
also there eternally.
Text: tr. J. Adam Rimbach, 1871–1941, alt.; Sigmund von Birken, 1626–1681
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: 705
Oh, that the Lord Would Guide My Ways
1 Oh,
that the Lord would guide my ways
To keep his statutes still!
Oh, that my God would grant
me grace
To know and do his will!
2 Order my footsteps by your Word,
And make my heart sincere;
Let sin have no dominion,
Lord,
But keep my conscience clear.
3 Assist my soul, too apt to stray,
A stricter watch to keep;
And should I e’er forget your
way,
Restore your wand’ring sheep.
4 Make me to walk in your commands-
’Tis a delightful road-
Nor let my head or heart or
hands
Offend against my God.
Text: Isaac Watts, 1674-1748, abr., alt.