Seventh Sunday of Easter
Service of Prayer and Preaching
OPENING VERSICLES
L This is the day which the Lord has made;
C let us rejoice and be glad in it.
L From the rising of the sun to its setting,
C the name of the Lord is to be praised.
L Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere;
C I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
L Make me to know Your ways, O Lord.
C Teach me Your paths.
L Sanctify us in Your truth.
C Your Word is truth.
L From the rising of the sun to its setting,
C the name of the Lord is to be praised.
C Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
OLD TESTAMENT CANTICLE LSB 261
C The Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.
With joy will you draw water from the wells of salvation.
And you will say in that day:
“Give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name,
make known His deeds among the peoples,
proclaim that His name is exalted.”
The Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.
Sing praises to the Lord, for He has done gloriously;
let this be made known in all the earth.
Shout, and sing for joy, O inhabitants of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
The Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen.
The Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.
READINGS FROM HOLY SCRIPTURE
READING 1 Peter 4:7–11
7The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. 8Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 9Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: 11whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
L This is the Word of the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
READING John 15:26—16:4
L A reading from John, the fifteenth chapter.
26[Jesus said:] “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. 27And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning.
1“I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. 2They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. 3And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me. 4But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you.
“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you.”
L This is the Word of the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
RESPONSORY
L Forever, O Lord, Your Word is firmly set in the heavens.
C Lord, I love the habitation of Your house and the place where Your glory dwells.
L Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and keep it.
C Lord, I love the habitation of Your house and the place where Your glory dwells.
L Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
C Lord, I love the habitation of Your house and the place where Your glory dwells.
TEN COMMANDMENTS
C You shall have no other gods.
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God.
Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.
Honor your father and your mother.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
APOSTLES’ CREED
C I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His 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 into hell.
The third day He rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.
From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Christian Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life T everlasting. Amen.
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.
SERMON
John 15:26 [Jesus said:] “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.”
Jesus, preparing for the day when he will no longer be visible to His disciples, promises to send them a Helper, the Holy Spirit. Jesus teaches them a lesson on the Holy Spirit, who precedes from the Father and the Son. His lesson now prepares us for Pentecost which we will celebrate next week.
Jesus teaches this lesson of vital importance to all His believers. He says, “I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away.” That should make us take notice. Without clearly understanding this truth, we risk falling away from Him and His salvation. The Holy Spirit and His Work are necessary for you. The Spirit’s ways and means, His Means of Grace are necessary for you, to keep you from falling away.
Jesus has to teach you about the Holy Spirit. You have to learn this lesson and appreciate the Holy Spirit and His work lest you fall away. Remember your catechism lesson, where you were taught to say, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”
The Holy Spirit is working to keep you in the true faith. It’s good and salutary for you to acknowledge and confess this. It is helpful for you to trust this lesson.
With this lesson, Jesus is inviting us to Church. He built His church on the apostles’ and the prophets’ teaching. Those who saw him face-to-face and heard the lessons from His own mouth have handed down those lessons to us. Jesus sent them the Holy Spirit, the helper, so that they could remember and record His Holy instruction. The church teaches and proclaims those lessons to each generation until Jesus returns.
Thank the Lord for His church. Not just because we like the way it feels when we go there. Not just because we have a lot of nostalgia about gathering there with our loved ones. Not just because it’s one institution that doesn’t change in this shaky, shifty world in which we live. We thank the Lord for the church because Jesus built it for us and now the Holy Spirit is here for us so we don’t fall away.
There’s an old saying that goes, whenever Christ builds his church, the devil builds a chapel.
Someone once made that old saying into a little poem like this:
Whenever God erects a house of prayer,
The devil always builds a chapel there,
And ‘twill be found, upon examination
The latter has the largest congregation.
You and I need help in this our religion and faith. We need the Spirit who has called us by the Gospel, to continually sanctify and keep us in the one true faith. We need His help because of our sin and the devil’s mischief. See the devil thinks sinners are easy prey. So he uses sin against us in two ways. First he tempts us to sin. Then he urges us to despair by reminding us and exaggerating the penalty for sin.
“Heaven is not for you”, he’ll tell you. “Heaven is full of holy people, good and righteous people. Not for the likes of you. Look what you’ve done. Look what you haven’t been doing. You know you were supposed to pray fervently and often. You know you were supposed to work harder at your job, clean your house better, love your family more. Too late now.” says the devil, your chief accuser.
Don’t listen to that devil. Listen to Jesus. Remember his lesson for you. “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.”
Jesus tells you. “Come to My Church. Listen to my Word. I know how much you need help with righteousness and faith. The Spirit is gonna help you. He will keep on teaching you about me -- how I did what the Father wanted me to do. The Spirit will keep reminding you that I died for you. The Spirit will bring you into my death and my life by baptizing you and sanctifying you. And when your last hour comes, the Holy Spirit will be with you and in you keep you in the true faith until you die.”
Amen
PRAYER
L In peace let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L For the gift of divine peace and of pardon, with all our heart and with all our mind, let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L For the holy Christian Church, here and scattered throughout the world, and for the proclamation of the Gospel and the calling of all to faith, let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L For this nation, for our cities and communities, and for the common welfare of us all, let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L For seasonable weather and for the fruitfulness of the earth, let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L For those who labor, for those whose work is difficult or dangerous, and for all who travel, let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L For all those in need, for the hungry and homeless, for the widowed and orphaned, and for all those in prison, let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L For the sick and dying and for all those who care for them, let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L For . . . [additional bids for prayer may be inserted here] . . . let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy.
L Finally, for these and for all our needs of body and soul, let us pray to the Lord:
C Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
COLLECT OF THE DAY
L O King of glory, Lord of hosts, uplifted in triumph far above all heavens, leave us not without consolation but send us the Spirit of truth whom You promised from the Father; for You live and reign with Him and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C Amen.
COLLECT FOR THE WORD
L Blessed Lord, You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning. Grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and take them to heart that, by the patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C Amen.
MORNING PRAYER
C I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me.
BLESSING
L Let us bless the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
L The almighty and merciful Lord, the Father, the T Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve us.
C Amen.
658 PRESERVE YOUR WORD, O SAVIOR
1 Preserve Your Word, O Savior,
To us this latter day,
And let Your kingdom flourish;
Enlarge Your Church, we pray.
O keep our faith from failing;
Keep hope’s bright star aglow.
Let nothing from truth turn us
While living here below.
To us this latter day,
And let Your kingdom flourish;
Enlarge Your Church, we pray.
O keep our faith from failing;
Keep hope’s bright star aglow.
Let nothing from truth turn us
While living here below.
2 Preserve, O Lord, Your honor,
The bold blasphemer smite;
Convince, convert, enlighten
The souls in error’s night.
Reveal Your will, dear Savior,
To all who dwell below,
Great light of all the living,
That all Your name may know.
The bold blasphemer smite;
Convince, convert, enlighten
The souls in error’s night.
Reveal Your will, dear Savior,
To all who dwell below,
Great light of all the living,
That all Your name may know.
3 Preserve, O Lord, Your Zion,
Bought dearly with Your blood;
Protect what You have chosen
Against the hellish flood.
Be always our defender
When dangers gather round;
When all the earth is crumbling,
Safe may Your Church be found.
Bought dearly with Your blood;
Protect what You have chosen
Against the hellish flood.
Be always our defender
When dangers gather round;
When all the earth is crumbling,
Safe may Your Church be found.
4 Preserve Your Word and preaching,
The truth that makes us whole,
The mirror of Your glory,
The pow’r that saves the soul.
Oh, may this living water,
This dew of heav’nly grace,
Sustain us while here living
Until we see Your face.
The truth that makes us whole,
The mirror of Your glory,
The pow’r that saves the soul.
Oh, may this living water,
This dew of heav’nly grace,
Sustain us while here living
Until we see Your face.
5 Preserve in wave and tempest
Your storm-tossed little flock;
Assailed by wind and weather,
May it endure each shock.
Stand at the helm, our pilot,
And set the course aright;
Then we will reach the harbor
In Your eternal light.
Your storm-tossed little flock;
Assailed by wind and weather,
May it endure each shock.
Stand at the helm, our pilot,
And set the course aright;
Then we will reach the harbor
In Your eternal light.
Text: © 1941 Concordia Publishing House. Used by permission: CPH Limited Promotional License no. 119000000
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Service of Prayer and Preaching from Lutheran Service Book
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Created by Lutheran Service Builder © 2018 Concordia Publishing House.
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