22 Jun Bulletin – Sunday, June 22, 2025
WELCOME to MESSIAH & ST. PETER LUTHERAN CHURCHES
David Wright, Guest Preacher
Greta Wright, Organist
Sunday, June 22, 2025
Second Sunday After Pentecost
ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRELUDE
BRIEF ORDER OF CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Most merciful God, we confess that we are in bondage to sin and cannot free ourselves. We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways, to the glory of your holy name. Amen.
In the mercy of Almighty God, Jesus Christ was given to die for us, and for his sake God forgives us our sins. Those who believe in Jesus Christ he gives the power to become children of Godand bestows on them the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
GATHERING HYMN
Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven #549
APOSTOLIC GREETING
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
And also with you.
KYRIE
🎶In peace let us pray to the Lord.
🎶Lord have mercy.
🎶For the peace from above, and for our salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
🎶Lord have mercy.
🎶For the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of the Church of God, and for the unity of all, let us pray to the Lord.
🎶Lord have mercy.
🎶For this holy house, and for all who offer here and online their worship and praise, let us pray to the Lord.
🎶Lord have mercy.
🎶Help, save, comfort, and defend us gracious Lord.
🎶Amen.
HYMN OF PRAISE
🎶Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth.
🎶Lord God, heavenly king, almighty God and Father: we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory. Lord Jesus Christ, only son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God: You take away the sin of the world; have mercy on us. You are seated at the right hand of the Father; receive our prayer. For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
🎶The Lord be with you.
🎶And Also with you.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
O Lord God, we bring before you the cries of a sorrowing world. In your mercy set us free from the chains that bind us, and defend us from everything that is evil, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
FIRST READING ISAIAH 65:1-9
I was ready to be sought out by those who did not ask, to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here I am, here I am,” to a nation that did not call on my name. I held out my hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices; a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and offering incense on bricks; who sit inside tombs, and spend the night in secret places; who eat swine’s flesh, with broth of abominable things in their vessels; who say, “Keep to yourself, do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.” These are a smoke in my nostrils, a fire that burns all day long. See, it is written before me: I will not keep silent, but I will repay; I will indeed repay into their laps their iniquities and their ancestors’ iniquities together, says the Lord; because they offered incense on the mountains and reviled me on the hills, I will measure into their laps full payment for their actions. Thus, says the Lord: As the wine is found in the cluster, and they say, “Do not destroy it, for there is a blessing in it,” so I will do for my servants’ sake, and not destroy them all. I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah inheritors of my mountains; my chosen shall inherit it, and my servants shall settle there.
PSALM 22:19-28
But you, O Lord, be not far away; O my help, hasten to my aid.
Deliver me from the sword, my life from the power of the dog.
Save me from the lion’s mouth! From the horns of wild bulls, you have rescued me.
I will declare your name to my people; in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.
You who fear the Lord, give praise! All you of Jacob’s line, give glory. Stand in awe of the Lord, all you offspring of Israel.
For the LORD does not despise nor abhor the poor in their poverty; neither is the Lord’s face hidden from them; but when they cry out, the Lord hears them.
From you comes my praise in the great assembly; I will perform my vows in the sight of those who fear the Lord.
The poor shall eat and be satisfied, let those who seek the Lord give praise! May your hearts live forever!
All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord; all the families of nations shall bow before God.
For dominion belongs to the Lord, who rules over the nations.
SECOND READING GALATIANS 3:23-29
Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
🎶Alleluia, Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Alleluia. Alleluia.
The Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke, the 8th chapter.
🎶Glory to you, O Lord.
GOSPEL LUKE 8:26-39
Then [Jesus and his disciples] arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time, he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me”— for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss. Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned. When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.
The Gospel of the Lord.
🎶Praise to you, O Christ.
SERMON
HYMN of the DAY
Jesus Calls Us; O’er the Tumult #494
PROFESSION of FAITH Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He decended into hell. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again 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.
PRAYERS of INTERCESSION
Drawn into the embrace of the holy Trinity, we lift our prayers for the wholeness of the church, the world, and all creation.
A brief silence.
We pray for the church. Clothe us in Christ, shower us in mercy, send us in love. Strengthen the faith and witness of Christians across the planet (international companion churches and synods may be named) and Christians in our community (local congregations may be named). God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for creation. Deliver the earth from disaster, bring forth life amid uncertainty, inspire wonder at all you have made. Sustain all people who delight in the well-being of your creation: farmers, agricultural workers, gardeners, birdwatchers, conservationists, scientists, advocates, and policy makers. God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for the nations. Pave a way to justice, drown the forces of oppression, bring peace on earth. Give leaders the will to turn from war and violence (areas in crises may be named). When people must flee their homes, guide them to safety. God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for people in need. Satisfy all who are poor, soothe those in pain, accompany all who are sick. Especially those on our prayer list. Give perseverance to each of us living with mental illness, and shield us from discrimination due to race, class, gender, or any other human distinction. God of grace, hear our prayer.
We pray for this assembly. Listen to our cries, come to our aid, make us one. Weave among us the fabric of belonging so that we rejoice in each person gathered here, and enliven our proclamation of how much you have done for us. God of grace, hear our prayer.
We offer our thanksgiving for all people who have died in faith. Keep them in your peace, comfort us in sorrow, raise us to new life. As we remember their faith and witness, may we trust your promise that we are yours forever. God of grace, hear our prayer.
Gather all our prayers in your mercy, O God, through Jesus Christ, our Savior. Amen.
EXCHANGE OF PEACE
OFFERING
OFFERATORY
🎶Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with your free Spirit.
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 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.
BENEDICTION
CLOSING HYMN
O Zion, Haste #397
DISMISSAL
Go in peace. Serve the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
POSTLUDE