St. John’s Lutheran Church, Folcroft
Worship Service September 27, 2020
https://stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org
WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Events for this week are:
Monday 7pm Zoom - Social Ministry Meeting
Tuesday 7pm Zoom - Finance Meeting
PRELUDE: Dearest Jesus, at Your Word (Bach)
CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
We begin in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
God of all mercy and consolation, come to the help of your people, turning us from our sin to live for you alone. Give us the power of your Holy Spirit that we may confess our sin, receive your forgiveness, and grow into the fullness of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
Let us confess our sins in the presence of God whose mercy is unending. Gracious God, have mercy on us. We confess that we have turned from you and given ourselves into the power of sin. We are truly sorry and humbly repent. In your compassion forgive us our sins, known and unknown, things we have done and things we have failed to do. Turn us again to you, and uphold us by your Spirit, so that we may live and serve you in newness of life through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
In the mercy of almighty God, Jesus Christ was given to die for us, and for his sake God forgives us all our sins. By grace you have been saved. In the name of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. Almighty God strengthen you with power through the Holy Spirit, that Christ may live in your hearts through faith. Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you. And also with you:
PRAYER OF THE DAY: Let us pray.
God of love, giver of life, you know our frailties and failings. Give us your grace to overcome them, keep us from those things that harm us, and guide us in the way of salvation, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.
GATHERING HYMN: Dearest Jesus, at Your Word (ELW 520)
FIRST READING: Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32
1The word of the LORD came to me: 2What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, “The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge” 3As I live, says the Lord GOD, this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel. 4Know that all lives are mine; the life of the parent as well as the life of the child is mine: it is only the person who sins that shall die.
25Yet you say, “The way of the Lord is unfair.” Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way unfair Is it not your ways that are unfair 26When the righteous turn away from their righteousness and commit iniquity, they shall die for it; for the iniquity that they have committed they shall die. 27Again, when the wicked turn away from the wickedness they have committed and do what is lawful and right, they shall save their life. 28Because they considered and turned away from all the transgressions that they had committed, they shall surely live; they shall not die. 29Yet the house of Israel says, “The way of the Lord is unfair.” O house of Israel, are my ways unfair Is it not your ways that are unfair
30Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, all of you according to your ways, says the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions; otherwise iniquity will be your ruin. 31Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel 32For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord GOD. Turn, then, and live.
PSALM: Psalm 25:1-9
1To | you, O LORD,
I lift | up my soul.
2My God, I put my trust in you; let me not be | put to shame,
nor let my enemies triumph | over me.
3Let none who look to you be | put to shame;
rather let those be put to shame | who are treacherous.
4Show me your | ways, O LORD,
and teach | me your paths.
5Lead me in your | truth and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation; in you have I trusted all the day long.
6Remember, O LORD, your compassion and love,
for they are from | everlasting.
7Remember not the sins of my youth and | my transgressions;
remember me according to your steadfast love and for the sake of your good- | ness, O LORD.
8You are gracious and upright, O LORD;
therefore you teach sinners | in your way.
9You lead the lowly in justice
and teach the lowly your way.
SECOND READING: Philippians 2:1-13
1If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, 2make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. 4Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. 5Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
6who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
8he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.
9Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
10so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
12Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Word of God, word of life.
GOSPEL: Matthew 21:23-32
The holy gospel according to Matthew. Glory to you, O Lord.
23When [Jesus] entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority ” 24Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin ” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him ’ 26But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.” 27So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
28“What do you think A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29He answered, ‘I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. 30The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir’; but he did not go. 31Which of the two did the will of his father ” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.”
The gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.
MEDITATION: Pastor Wende
HYMN OF THE DAY O Master, Let Me Walk with You (ELW 818)
APOSTLES' CREED
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s 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 to the dead.*
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come 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.
OFFERING
Offerings may be made on line through our website: stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org or sent by mail to
St. John’s Lutheran church, 1500 Glen Avenue, Folcroft, PA 19032.
PRAYERS OF THE INTERCESSION:
Drawn together in the compassion of God, we pray for the church, the world, and all those in need.
In all the world, give your church unity. Inspire all the baptized with the mind of Christ. Where the church is powerful and where it struggles, shape us with humility and obedience so that your love may be at work in us. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Your Son took on all of bodily life in our world, even to death. Preserve and keep your creation, O God. Mend and redeem places that are polluted and damaged, so that all of creation confesses you as Lord. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Turn the nations toward life. Where our ways are unfair, give us new hearts and new spirits. Where sin permeates our cultures and institutions, change our minds and teach us to trust your authority. Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
Our lives are yours, O God. Relieve the suffering of those who are ill in body, mind, or spirit. Defend the lives and welfare of children who are abused or neglected, hungry or exploited, bullied or lonely. We especially pray for those who are affected by the wild fires in our western states and for the firefighters who are battling the fires, those who are all affected by the covid virus in mind, body or spirit and for Derek, Morgan, Priscilla, Connie and her family, Lois, Pat, Hazel, Bill, Jacklyn, Addison, Joe, Deb, Tim, Ash, Sue, Gavin, Donna, Robert, Alannah, Lillian, Alexis, Sarah, Bob, Sharon, Shane, Tom, Carl, Cindy, Chrissy, Monica, Norman, Tucker, Marc, Helen, Lucas the Folcroft Police, Holy Spirit Secane, St. Timothy Aston, and those we now raise before you in our hearts; Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Turn this congregation away from our own interests toward the interests of others. Fill us with your compassion and sympathy. Bless ministries of care in our community; make us into signs of your mercy and justice for our neighbors. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Thank you for those who have gone into the kingdom ahead of us—tax collectors and prostitutes, likely and unlikely, obedient and slow to learn. By their witness, teach us to confess Jesus Christ as Lord in life and in death. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
All these things and whatever else you see that we need, we entrust to your mercy; through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The 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.
BLESSING: May the One who brought forth Jesus from the dead raise you to new life, fill you with hope and turn your mourning into dancing. Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever. Amen.
SENDING SONG Voices Raised to You (ELW 845)
DISMISSAL: Let the love of Christ shine through all you do and say, serve the Lord. Thanks be to God. Amen
We hope that this service was meaningful for you and brought God’s peace and comfort into your homes. Continue to shelter in place to love others as yourself. Pray, trust, believe and wait. See you next week.
POSTLUDE: Postlude in A-flat (Muffat)
You are welcome to watch the live service at 10:15 am at https://www.facebook.com/wende.bleam
Or you can watch live streaming on the St. John's website: https://stjohnslutheranfolcroft.org
If you are having trouble accessing, please let us know.
From Sundays and Seasons.com. Copyright 2013 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #44714. 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.
Our Financial Response (August)
CURRENT
Budgeted costs per month $ 9,021.10
Offering last month $ 4,877.01
Budget required to date (8 months) $ 72,168.80
Total received to date $ 38,717.26
MISSION SUPPORT
Budget required to date (8 months) $ 5,000.00
Total received to date $ 3,513.00
Thank you for sharing yourselves and your resources. To God be the glory!
