26 Feb BULLETIN – SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2023
WELCOME to MESSIAH & ST. PETER LUTHERAN CHURCHES
Reverend Nancy Brody, Pastor
Greta Wright, Music Director
Sunday, February 26, 2023
First Sunday in Lent
GREETING AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRELUDE
CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
Blessed be the holy Trinity, [+] one God, who journeys with us these forty days, and sustains us with the gift of grace.
Amen.
Let us acknowledge before God and one another our need for repentance and God’s mercy. Silence is kept for reflection.
Holy God, we confess our faults and failings. Too often we neglect and do not trust; we take instead of give; overindulge rather than practice discipline; without meaning to, we cause hurt. Our tendency is to become concerned for ourselves and forget com-passion for others. Forgive, renew, and heal us from within, for we truly seek to follow you. Amen.
Because of Jesus Christ, there’s no chasm or barrier between us and God. Forgiveness is a sign and promise that God is full of life, not death, About mercy, not imposing penalties. Jesus, too, was tempted, and overcame all things by trusting God’s mighty power to love. Be forgiven by all three persons of the Holy Trinity, [+] Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen.
ENTRANCE HYMN A Mighty Fortress Is Our God #229
KYRIE and HYMN OF PRAISE Pages 57-60
PRAYER of the DAY
Lord God, our strength, the struggle between good and evil rages within and around us, and the devil and all the forces that defy you tempt us with empty promises. Keep us steadfast in your word, and when we fall, raise us again and restore us through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
FIRST READING GENESIS 2:15-17; 3:1-7
The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.” Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.’ ” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
PSALM 32
Happy are they whose transgressions are forgiven, and whose sin is put away!
Happy are they to whom the Lord imputes no guilt, and in whose spirit there is no guile!
While I held my tongue, my bones withered away, because of my groaning all day long.
For your hand was heavy upon me day and night; my moisture was dried up as in the heat of summer.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and did not conceal my guilt. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.” Then you forgave me the guilt of my sin.
Therefore all the faithful will make their prayers to you in time of trouble; when the great waters over-flow, they shall not reach them.
You are my hiding place; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way that you should go; I will guide you with my eye.
Do not be like horse or mule, which have no under-standing; who must be fitted with bit and bridle, or else they will not stay near you.”
Great are the tribulations of the wicked; but mercy embraces those who trust in the Lord.
Be glad, you righteous, and rejoice in the Lord; shout for joy, all who are true of heart.
SECOND READING ROMANS 5:12-19
Just as sin came into the world through one man, and death came through sin, and so death spread to all because all have sinned—sin was indeed in the world before the law, but sin is not reckoned when there is no law. Yet death exercised dominion from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sins were not like the transgression of Adam, who is a type of the one who was to come. But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died through the one man’s trespass, much more surely have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abounded for the many. And the free gift is not like the effect of one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brings justification. If, because of the one man’s trespass, death exercised dominion through that one, much more surely will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness exercise dominion in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. Therefore just as one man’s trespass led to condemnation for all, so one man’s act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all. For just as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION Page 63
GOSPEL MATTHEW 4:1-11
Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ” Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’ ”Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ” Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’ ” Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.
SERMON
HYMN of the DAY O Lord, throughout These Forty Days #99
PROFESSION of FAITH/APOSTLE’S CREED Page 65
PRAYERS of INTERCESSION
Sustained by God’s abundant mercy, let us pray for the church, the world, and all of creation. A brief silence.
You alone are God. Sustain your church in times of challenge and temptation. Minister to the ongoing needs of everyone who attempts to faithfully live out their vocation. Guide the church’s activity and identity in the world; strengthen its leadership and influence; guard its administration and attendance. Give vision and wisdom to all entrusted with its care and future. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
You create verdant gardens, expansive deserts, and tend to the needs of every living thing. Bless those who work the land, sustain it so the entire world will be provided for and replenished. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
You know what tempts us. Humble those who govern and legislate. Instill in them a sense of dependence for justice and righteousness, so equity and peace would pervade their thoughts and all they aim to accomplish. May the resolve to overcome evil extend to all regions and nations of the world. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
You are a hiding place for all in distress. Draw near to exiles; accompany all refugees and immigrants, especially children who travel alone. In times of trouble, trauma, or illness, surround people with your steadfast love, especially those on our prayer list. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
You offer abundance to all. Bless ministries of hospitality. Care for those tending the needs of others, the maintenance of property, the workings of and presence of our church in community: especially council members, Preschool and Sunday school teachers, childcare providers, committee members, other volunteers and supporters. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
You alone are God. We praise you for the faithful departed in every age. Unite our prayers with theirs, until our wilderness journey is complete, and we rest in you. Merciful God, receive our prayer.
We lift our prayers to you, O God, trusting in your steadfast love and your promise to renew all of creation; through Jesus Christ our Savior, our brother, our Lord on high. Amen.
PEACE
OFFERING
OFFERTORY
Create in me… Page 75
THE LORD’S PRAYER
BENEDICTION Page 74
CLOSING HYMN Guide Me Ever, Great Redeemer #343
BLESSING Page 74
DISMISSAL Page 74
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 Nancy Matter in memory of Harry Matter.
Altar flowers at Messiah have been presented by Sally Piatak in memory of Claude and Sara Straw.