Prelude
Bells, Welcome, Announcements and Sharing
á Hymn I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light (ELW #815)
Thomerson
á Confession and Forgiveness
P Blessed be the holy Trinity, ☩ one God,
who stretches out the heavens,
who sends light to the nations,
who gives breath to us all.
C Amen.
P Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another.
P Loving God,
C we confess that we have turned from your way
to follow our own ways.
Forgive us for the times
we have spoken or acted too quickly;
we have not spoken or acted at all;
we have hurt those closest to us;
we have hurt those we have yet to know;
we have thought more about ourselves than others;
we have thought less of ourselves than we ought.
Turn us around, and give us a fresh start,
so that we can live again as your children. Amen.
P Even when we have done wrong, God makes us right.
Even when we have messed up, God puts us together.
God’s love never runs out.
God never tires of calling us beloved children.
Hear God say to you now:
Your sins are forgiven,
for the sake of ☩ Jesus Christ our Savior.
C Amen.
Hymn Sanctuary
Thompson, Scruggs
Refrain: Lord prepare me
To be a sanctuary
Pure and holy
Tried and true
With thanksgiving
I’ll be a living
Sanctua ry for You Sing 3 Times
Prayer of the Day
P Beloved of God, called to be saints:
Grace, mercy, and peace be with you all.
C And also with you.
P Let us pray…
C God of miracles,
Sometimes we are slow to believe in your power, even when your miracles occur all around us each and every day. Open our eyes to see and our hearts to believe.
Amen.
Kids in the Kingdom
Scripture Acclamation God’s Word is Our Great Heritage
(ELW #509)
God’s word is our great heritage
and shall be ours forever,
To spread its light from age to age
shall be our chief endeavor.
Through life it guides our way;
in death it is our stay.
Lord grant while time shall last
your church may hold it fast
Throughout all generations.
Responsive Reading Psalm 40
1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the desolate pit,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the Lord.
4 Happy are those who make
the Lord their trust,
who do not turn to the proud,
to those who go astray after false gods.
5 You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
none can compare with you.
Were I to proclaim and tell of them,
they would be more than can be counted.
Gospel John 4:46–5:18
L The Holy Gospel from John in the 4th Chapter
C Glory to you, O Lord
46 Then he came again to Cana in Galilee where he had changed the water into wine. Now there was a royal official whose son lay ill in Capernaum. 47 When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. 48 Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” 49 The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my little boy dies.” 50 Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and started on his way. 51 As he was going down, his slaves met him and told him that his child was alive. 52 So he asked them the hour when he began to recover, and they said to him, “Yesterday at one in the afternoon the fever left him.” 53 The father realized that this was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” So he himself believed, along with his whole household. 54 Now this was the second sign that Jesus did after coming from Judea to Galilee.
5 After this there was a festival of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
2 Now in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate there is a pool, called in Hebrew Beth-zatha, which has five porticoes. 3 In these lay many invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. 5 One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be made well?” 7 The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; and while I am making my way, someone else steps
down ahead of me.” 8 Jesus said to him, “Stand up, take your mat and walk.” 9 At once the man was made well, and he took up his mat and began to walk.
Now that day was a sabbath. 10 So the Jews said to the man who had been cured, “It is the sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.” 11 But he answered them, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Take up your mat and walk.’ ” 12 They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take it up and walk’?” 13 Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had disappeared in the crowd that was there. 14 Later Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you have been made well! Do not sin any more, so that nothing worse happens to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16 Therefore the Jews started persecuting Jesus, because he was doing such things on the sabbath. 17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father is still working, and I also am working.” 18 For this reason the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because he was not only breaking the sabbath, but was also calling God his own Father, thereby making himself equal to God.
L This is the Gospel of our Lord
C Praise to You O Christ
Sermon Brendan Johnston
á Hymn A Mighty Fortress Is Our God (#504)
Service of Affirmation of Baptism
Presentation of Confirmands
Jamie Platcek Vickie Platcek Nolan Anderson
Addy Bentler Brie Svendsen Maddi MacFarlane
Ava Bailey Odin Hanson Cameron Peterson.
á Profession of Faith
P I ask you to profess your faith in Christ Jesus, reject sin, and confess the faith of the church.
Do you renounce the devil and all the forces that defy God?
C I renounce them.
P Do you renounce the powers of this world that rebel against God?
C I renounce them.
P Do you renounce the ways of sin that draw you from God?
C I renounce them.
P Do you believe in God the Father?
C I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.
P Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God?
C 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.
P Do you believe in God the Holy Spirit?
C 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.
Affirmation
P You have made public profession of your faith.
Do you intend to continue in the covenant God made with you in holy baptism… :
to live among God’s faithful people,
to hear the word of God and share in the Lord’s supper,
to proclaim the good news of God in Christ through word and deed,
to serve all people, following the example of Jesus,
and to strive for justice and peace in all the earth?
Confirmands: I do, and I ask God to help and guide me.
P People of God, do you promise to support these sisters and brothers and pray for them in their life in Christ?
C We do, and we ask God to help and guide us.
P Let us pray….
Confirmands come forward with family, mentors, sponsors, etc, for this prayer…
Stir up in name the gift of your Holy Spirit: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord, the spirit of joy in your presence, both now and forever.
Amen.
P Let us rejoice with these sisters and brothers in Christ.
C We rejoice with you in the life of baptism.
Together we will give thanks and praise to God
and proclaim the good news to all the world.
Offering Prayer
P Merciful God,
C we offer with joy and thanksgiving what you have first given us—our selves, our time, and our possessions, signs of your gracious love. Receive them for the sake of him who offered himself for us, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Prayers of Bethlehem
During the prayers, there will be an opportunity for you to lift up a thanksgiving, a prayer concern, the name of someone on your mind today. All are encouraged to join in this time of public prayer.
L … Lord in your mercy …
C … Hear our prayer.
Meal
God feeds us with the presence of Jesus Christ
Words of Institution
á Lord’s Prayer
C 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.
Communion in the Pews
We believe that Jesus is truly present in the elements of communion – and all are welcome to receive Jesus in this food and drink. Prepackaged communion will be available in pews and as you enter worship. Please open and receive this sacrament during the Words of Institution.
á Post Communion Prayer
P God our creator,
C at this table you have satisfied us
with the good things of your grace.
Fix our hearts on your mercy and truth,
that our lives may reflect your love for all creation,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
LEAVE TO LIVE THE WORD
á Blessing
P The God of glory dwell in you richly,
name you beloved,
and shine brightly on your path;
and the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, the ☩ Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be upon you and remain with you always.
á Sending Hymn Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee (ELW #836)
Henry VanDyke
á Dismissal
P Go in peace. Christ is with you.
C Thanks be to God!