22 Feb Bulleting – Sunday, February 22, 2026
WELCOME to MESSIAH & ST. PETER LUTHERAN CHURCHES
The Reverend Nancy Brody, Pastor
Greta Wright, Organist
Sunday, February 22, 2026
First Sunday of Lent
ANNOUNCEMENTS
PRELUDE
ORDER OF CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS
Blessed be the holy Trinity, ☩ one God, who forgives all our sin, whose mercy endures forever. Amen.
Let us confess our sin before God, who removes our guilt and blots out all offenses. Silence is kept for reflection.
Gracious God, have mercy on us according to your steadfast love.
For seeking worldly delights that deceive us and dishonor you: Gracious God, have mercy on us according to your steadfast love.
For desiring self-reliance instead of hungering for your word: Gracious God, have mercy on us according to your steadfast love.
For failing to recognize your coming reign, and for hindering the work of the Spirit: Gracious God, have mercy on us according to your steadfast love.
For drawing from the well of self-serving ambition, and for disdaining the living water Christ offers: Gracious God, have mercy on us according to your steadfast love.
For disregarding voices from the margin, and for distrusting signs of your healing and hope in the world: Gracious God, have mercy on us according to your steadfast love.
For dwelling in tombs of self-pity and discontent, and for disregarding Christ’s call to come forth to life: Gracious God, have mercy on us according to your steadfast love.
God’s steadfast love, grace, and forgiveness abound. Through faith, the free gift of God, you have been clothed in the righteousness of Christ. In the name of ☩ Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. The Spirit of the One who raised Christ from the dead dwells in you, pours God’s love into your hearts, and gives you life and peace. Amen.
GATHERING HYMN
The Glory of These Forty Days #657 WOV
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
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 overflow, 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 understanding; 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 for sin was indeed in the world before the law, but sin is not reckoned when there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin in the likeness of Adam, who is a pattern 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 gift in the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, abounded for the many. And the gift is not like the effect of the one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the gift following many trespasses brings justification. If, because of the one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one, much more surely will those who receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness reign 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 through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so through the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
🎶Alleluia, Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Alleluia. Alleluia.
The Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew, the 4th chapter.
🎶Glory to you, O Lord.
GOSPEL MATTHEW 4:1-11
Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tested by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward 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 glory, and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Then 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.
The Gospel of the Lord.
🎶Praise to you, O Christ.
SERMON
HYMN of the DAY
What Wondrous Love Is This #385
PROFESSION of FAITH Nicene Creed
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, creator 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, by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the virgin Mary and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered, died, 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 with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic 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.
PRAYERS of INTERCESSION
Reconciled by God’s mercy and sustained by God’s presence, let us pray for the world and its needs. A brief silence.
God of all grace, give faith to your church. Grant unto the baptized the will to resist temptation and to worship and serve you alone. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of all creation, tend this earth. When human greed and disobedience threaten this planet and the life it contains, lead us by your Spirit into ways of reverence, awe, and gentleness. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of all nations, preserve us from trouble. Surround all living in places of violence with your steadfast love and give resilience to all who work for peace. Grant courage to those who challenge every form of discrimination and every means of oppression. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of all healing, mend our wounds. Bring wholeness to all who are sick, give peace to all who groan in grief, and send companions to all who are lonely or isolated, especially those on our prayer list. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of all people, establish and strengthen every family and community. For all who hunger for bread, bring nourishment. For all who hunger for truth, may your life-giving word offer sustenance. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
God of all life, draw every person to yourself. We thank you for free and abounding grace, and for those who, by that same grace, now rest eternally in you. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.
Receive our prayers, O God, through Jesus Christ, our strength and salvation. 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.
BLESSING
CLOSING HYMN
Guide Me Ever, Great Redeemer #343
DISMISSAL
Go in peace. Serve the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
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 are presented by Bruce & Diane Keister in memory of James Keister and George & Catherine Geise.