08 Jan BULLETIN – JANUARY 8, 2023
WELCOME to MESSIAH & ST. PETER LUTHERAN CHURCHES
Reverend Nancy Brody, Pastor
Greta Wright, Music Director
Sunday, January 8, 2023
Baptism of Our Lord
GREETING AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRELUDE
CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
Blessed be the holy Trinity, ☩ one God, who makes all things new, whose mercy endures forever. Amen.
Trusting in God’s mercy, let us confess our sin. Silence is kept for reflection.
Holy One, source of our renewal, we confess that we are wrapped up in sin, and cannot free ourselves. We have not practiced your righteousness. Our hearts have turned away from you. For the sake of the world you so love, forgive us, that we may be reconciled to one another for the glory of your holy name. Amen.
Thus says our God: “The former things have come to pass and new things I now declare.” God’s mercy makes us new. We are forgiven in the name of ☩ Christ our Savior. Amen.
ENTRANCE HYMN We Three Kings of Orient Are WOV #646
KYRIE and HYMN OF PRAISE Pages 57-60
PRAYER of the DAY
O God our Father, at the baptism of Jesus you proclaimed him your beloved Son and anointed him with the Holy Spirit. Make all who are baptized into Christ faithful to their calling to be your daughters and sons, and empower us all with your Spirit, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
FIRST READING ISAIAH 42:1-9
Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be crushed until he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his teaching. Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it: I am the Lord, I have called you in righteous-ness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations, to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness. I am the Lord, that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to idols. See, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth, I tell you of them.
PSALM 29
Ascribe to the Lord, you gods, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due God’s name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; the God of glory thunders; the Lord is upon the mighty waters.
The voice of the Lord is a powerful voice; the voice of the Lord is a voice of splendor. The voice of the Lord is upon the waters.
The voice of the Lord breaks the cedar trees; the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon;
the Lord makes Lebanon skip like a calf, and Mount Hermon like a young wild ox.
The voice of the Lord bursts forth in lightning flashes.
The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord is upon the waters.
The voice of the Lord makes the oak trees writhe and strips the forests bare. And in the temple of the Lord all are crying, “Glory!”
The Lord sits enthroned above the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as king forevermore.
O Lord, give strength to your people; give them, O Lord, the blessings of peace.
The voice of the Lord is upon the waters.
SECOND READING ACTS 10:34-43
Peter began to speak to [Cornelius and his household]: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all. That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
Alleluia.
A voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” Alleluia.
GOSPEL MATTHEW 3:13-17
Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented. And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”
SERMON
HYMN of the DAY Shall We Gather at the River WOV#690
PROFESSION of FAITH/NICENE CREED Page 64
PRAYERS of INTERCESSION
Called together to follow Jesus, we pray for the church, the world, and all in need. A brief silence.
Blessing God, in Christ you gather the beloved community. Fan the gifts of your Holy Spirit to glow with imagination and wisdom. Speak power to your church so we open our hearts and minds to do whatever you declare. Equip all servants: those chosen, called and ordained by you: bishops, pastors, deacons, lay leaders, teachers, parents and students of the faith. Equip the baptized for your reconciling redeeming work. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Renewing God, you provide the waters of our earth and atmosphere, delivering life and revealing a means of grace through Jesus’ baptism. Cleanse and protect oceans, rivers, and watersheds. Bring relief to parched lands and clean safe water to every community and landscape. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Righteous God, you never weary of establishing justice. Increase cooperation and constructive dialogue between nations. Guide local, national, and international authorities to govern with equity, vision, and integrity. We pray for those in military service, for peacemakers, and for our enemies. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Abiding God, your mercy is steadfast. Give sanctuary to people who flee from oppression, war, poverty, and famine. Provide freedom to those who lack means to escape. Sustain health care workers, caregivers, first responders, counselors, and all who help and heal. Comfort those who struggle, grieve or experience crisis (especially those on our prayer list). Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Promising God, your faithfulness endures throughout all generations. We give thanks for those who have lived and died with Christ, trusting we will be united as saints in Christ. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
Compassionate God, you give meaning and purpose to everything and can bring good from anything. We bring to you everything on our hearts and minds, our needs and hopes, trusting your wisdom and power revealed in Christ born, baptized, crucified and risen. Thank you for offering life, healing and forgiveness through grace. Amen.
PEACE
OFFERING
OFFERTORY
THE LORD’S PRAYER
BENEDICTION Page 74
CLOSING HYMN Alleluia, Song of Gladness WOV#654
BLESSING
DISMISSAL
POSTLUDE
Revised Common Lectionary copyright © 1992 Consultation on Common Texts. Used by permission. Prayers adapted from Sundays and Seasons, copyright © 2019, Augsburg Fortress. Used with permission. Psalm readings from Lutheran Book of Worship, copyright © 1978. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual Subscription #SB160715 Other quotations from Scripture from New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989, National Council of Churches in Christ in the United States of America. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
Altar flowers at St Peter have been presented by Glenn and Gloria Yeager in memory of all loved ones.
Altar flowers at Messiah have been presented by Jan Tobias Kieffer in remembrance that “With God, All is Possible.”