P In the name of the Father and of the T Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C Amen.
INTROIT Psalm 48
We have thought on your steadfast love, | O God,*
in the midst of your | temple.
As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends | of the earth.*
Your right hand is filled with | righteousness.
Great is the Lord and greatly | to be praised*
in the city of our God, his holy | mountain.
Within her | citadels*
God has made himself known as a | fortress.
Let Mount Zion | be glad!*
Let the daughters of Judah rejoice because of your | judgments!
This is God, our God forever and | ever.*
He will guide us for- | ever.
Glory be to the Father and | to the Son*
and to the Holy | Spirit;
as it was in the be- | ginning,*
is now, and will be forever. | Amen.
We have thought on your steadfast love, | O God,*
in the midst of your | temple.
As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends | of the earth.*
Your right hand is filled with | righteousness.
in the midst of your | temple.
As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends | of the earth.*
Your right hand is filled with | righteousness.
Great is the Lord and greatly | to be praised*
in the city of our God, his holy | mountain.
Within her | citadels*
God has made himself known as a | fortress.
Let Mount Zion | be glad!*
Let the daughters of Judah rejoice because of your | judgments!
This is God, our God forever and | ever.*
He will guide us for- | ever.
Glory be to the Father and | to the Son*
and to the Holy | Spirit;
as it was in the be- | ginning,*
is now, and will be forever. | Amen.
We have thought on your steadfast love, | O God,*
in the midst of your | temple.
As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends | of the earth.*
Your right hand is filled with | righteousness.
P Let us pray.
Grant to us, Lord, the Spirit to think and do always such things as are right, that we, who cannot do anything that is good without You, may be enabled by You to live according to Your will; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C Amen.
GLORIA IN EXCELSIS LSB 204
C 1 To God on high be glory
And peace to all the earth;
Goodwill from God in heaven
Proclaimed at Jesus’ birth!
We praise and bless You, Father;
Your holy name, we sing—
Our thanks for Your great glory,
Lord God, our heav’nly King.
2 To You, O sole-begotten,
The Father’s Son, we pray;
O Lamb of God, our Savior,
You take our sins away.
Have mercy on us, Jesus;
Receive our heartfelt cry,
Where You in pow’r are seated
At God’s right hand on high—
3 For You alone are holy;
You only are the Lord.
Forever and forever,
Be worshiped and adored;
You with the Holy Spirit
Alone are Lord Most High,
In God the Father’s glory.
“Amen!” our glad reply.
OLD TESTAMENT READING Jeremiah 23:16–29
16Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord. 17They say continually to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.’”
18For who among them has stood in the council of the Lord
to see and to hear his word,
or who has paid attention to his word and listened?
19Behold, the storm of the Lord!
Wrath has gone forth,
a whirling tempest;
it will burst upon the head of the wicked.
20The anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he has executed and accomplished
the intents of his heart.
In the latter days you will understand it clearly.
to see and to hear his word,
or who has paid attention to his word and listened?
19Behold, the storm of the Lord!
Wrath has gone forth,
a whirling tempest;
it will burst upon the head of the wicked.
20The anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he has executed and accomplished
the intents of his heart.
In the latter days you will understand it clearly.
21“I did not send the prophets,
yet they ran;
I did not speak to them,
yet they prophesied.
22But if they had stood in my council,
then they would have proclaimed my words to my people,
and they would have turned them from their evil way,
and from the evil of their deeds.
yet they ran;
I did not speak to them,
yet they prophesied.
22But if they had stood in my council,
then they would have proclaimed my words to my people,
and they would have turned them from their evil way,
and from the evil of their deeds.
23“Am I a God at hand, declares the Lord, and not a God afar off? 24Can a man hide himself in secret places so that I cannot see him? declares the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the Lord. 25I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in my name, saying, ‘I have dreamed, I have dreamed!’ 26How long shall there be lies in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies, and who prophesy the deceit of their own heart, 27who think to make my people forget my name by their dreams that they tell one another, even as their fathers forgot my name for Baal? 28Let the prophet who has a dream tell the dream, but let him who has my word speak my word faithfully. What has straw in common with wheat? declares the Lord. 29Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?”
A This is the Word of the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
PSALM Psalm 26
1Vindicate me, O Lord,
for I have walked in my integrity,
and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.
2Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
test my heart and my mind.
3For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
and I walk in your faithfulness.
for I have walked in my integrity,
and I have trusted in the Lord without wavering.
2Prove me, O Lord, and try me;
test my heart and my mind.
3For your steadfast love is before my eyes,
and I walk in your faithfulness.
4I do not sit with men of falsehood,
nor do I consort with hypocrites.
5I hate the assembly of evildoers,
and I will not sit with the wicked.
nor do I consort with hypocrites.
5I hate the assembly of evildoers,
and I will not sit with the wicked.
6I wash my hands in innocence
and go around your altar, O Lord,
7proclaiming thanksgiving aloud,
and telling all your wondrous deeds.
and go around your altar, O Lord,
7proclaiming thanksgiving aloud,
and telling all your wondrous deeds.
8O Lord, I love the habitation of your house
and the place where your glory dwells.
9Do not sweep my soul away with sinners,
nor my life with bloodthirsty men,
10in whose hands are evil devices,
and whose right hands are full of bribes.
and the place where your glory dwells.
9Do not sweep my soul away with sinners,
nor my life with bloodthirsty men,
10in whose hands are evil devices,
and whose right hands are full of bribes.
11But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;
redeem me, and be gracious to me.
12My foot stands on level ground;
in the great assembly I will bless the Lord.
redeem me, and be gracious to me.
12My foot stands on level ground;
in the great assembly I will bless the Lord.
HOLY GOSPEL
P The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, the seventh chapter.
C Glory to You, O Lord.
15[Jesus said:] “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
21“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”
P This is the Gospel of the Lord.
C Praise to You, O Christ.
Apostles’ Creed
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 everlasting. Amen.
SERMON
Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” Matthew 7:21.
These words oughta make you stop and think. “Not everyone”. Eternal salvation is not just to be assumed. In fact, it’s dangerous to assume salvation. Some who are assuming they are “O.K.” with God will on Judgement Day hear the Lord say to them, “I don’t know you.”
Dear friends what we need to do, is to preach and hear and believe the Gospel. What is going to heal what’s ailing us is the Gospel. What’s most important, most precious thing we have is the Gospel -- and the Gospel is this: God loves you and forgives your sins because of Jesus. That’s the simple Gospel truth. Nothing else compares to it for urgency, importance and value.
God, both in the Old Testament, in Jeremiah’s words, and in the New Testament, in the Lord Jesus’ words, warns us and all people, beware of false prophets. It’s so eternally important to hear and believe the true Gospel of Jesus. So we have to be careful to not fall for a false gospel from a false prophet. A false prophet might sound very good, very appealing. But the false message of a false prophet disrespects God and endangers people.
There are all kinds of false prophets. Some are blatant and obvious, directing their hearers to a false god. Mohammed was a false prophet. His Qu’ran is a false message. Islam is a false religion worshiping the false god of Mohammed’s imagination and dreams. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is full of false prophets. They refer to God as Father and use many Christian words, so it is not quite as obvious. The inventor of the Mormon religion, Joseph Smith is one of these that Jesus warns about who claim to prophesy in the Lord’s name, but make up their own prophecy. About such characters, Jesus says to you, “Beware!”
Some people are disturbed to hear statements like that from the Lord. It’s not very polite of Him to call men like Mohammed and Joseph Smith false prophets -- not kind words! But we have to listen to what the Lord says about false prophets and warn others not to be tricked out of the gospel by them.
Some will say, “How dare you say such intolerant things!” “How rude and abusive of you to say your religion is true and contrary religions are false! You can’t be so sure of yourself!” “Truth!” They exclaim. “What is truth? There is no such thing. Let everybody make up their own minds.” --- And that right there, is the commonest, biggest, false prophecy of all: “There is no truth.”
In Jeremiah’s day, there were false prophets who said “to those who despise the word of the Lord, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.’”
“It’s O.K.” these false prophets say, “Do whatever you want to do, whatever makes you happy.” Believe whatever “truth” you want to believe, whatever works for you.” That message is appealing to sinners. It makes them feel in charge of their own life and their own destiny. And then they’re surprised when they get to heaven and the Lord says, “I don’t know you.”
So don’t think that it is unloving to point out false prophets and false messages. The best way to love someone is to be caring and helpful about their eternal life. When you love someone you shouldn’t lie to them. And you shouldn’t step back and watch them fall for a lie.
We hold to the truth in order to be (1) faithful to God and (2) loving to our neighbor. If you are listening to this and you’re not a member of this congregation, we welcome you to come and listen. Our doors are open. But some things we will insist on. For example, we only invite people to the Communion in our services who believe what we believe. We don’t say here, “Ah, it doesn’t matter. Believe what you want to believe, do what you want do.” No, rather, in order to be (1) faithful to God and (2) loving to our neighbor, we invite our guests to first listen, learn, agree to the truth and then share in the full membership, fellowship and communion of the Lord’s church and altar.
Ok. Back to the verse we started with.
Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” Matthew 7:21.
The one who does the will of the Father enters the kingdom of heaven. Is that law or gospel? We might be inclined to believe Jesus means this in a law sense here. God’s will is that you behave, you love your neighbor, you follow the Ten Commandments. But the Spirit and God’s Word lead us to the Gospel truth. God enjoys working with His children in the Gospel. Jesus died for you, so God forgives you and gives you eternal life. That’s His will. Doing His will is believing that Gospel, taking it to yourself, making it your own.
This all important truth is for your salvation as it shows you God the Father’s love and forgiveness and the truth of the Gospel is His invitation to you to join Him in His eternal life.
Hold onto that Truth. Amen.
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
Almighty and eternal God, worthy to be held in reverence by all people everywhere, we give You humble and sincere thanks for the innumerable blessings that You have bestowed on us without any merit or worthiness on our part.
We praise You especially for preserving for us Your saving Word and the holy Sacraments. Grant and preserve to Your holy Church throughout the world purity of doctrine, and provide faithful pastors to preach Your Word with power. Help all who hear the Word rightly to understand and truly to believe it. Send laborers into Your harvest, and open the door of faith to those who do not know You. In mercy, bring to repentance the enemies of Your Church, and grant them amendment of life. Protect and defend Your Church in all tribulation and danger. Strengthen us and all fellow Christians to set our hope fully on the grace revealed in Christ, and help us to fight the good fight of faith that in the end we may receive the salvation of our souls.
Bestow Your grace on all nations of the earth. Bless especially our country, its inhabitants, and all who are in authority. Let Your glory dwell in our land that mercy and truth, righteousness and peace may abound in all places. We commend to You the care of our schools so that our children may grow in useful knowledge and Christian virtue and thus bring forth wholesome fruits of life.
Graciously defend us from all calamity by fire and water, from war and pestilence, from scarcity and famine, and from every other evil. Protect and prosper all who labor in their rightful callings, and let all useful arts flourish among us. Be the God and Father of the lonely and the forsaken, the helper of the sick and needy, the comforter of the distressed and those who sorrow.
Accept, we implore You, our bodies and souls, our hearts and minds, our talents and powers, together with the offerings we bring before You as our humble service.
Grant Your Holy Spirit to those who come to the Lord’s Table this day that they may receive the body and blood of Jesus Christ in sincere repentance and firm faith and to their abundant blessing.
As we are strangers and pilgrims on earth, help us by true faith and a godly life to prepare for the world to come, doing the work You have given us to do while it is day, before the night comes when no one can work. And when our last hour comes, support us by Your power, and receive us into Your heavenly kingdom; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
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.
BENEDICAMUS
A Let us bless the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
BENEDICTION
P The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.
The Lord look upon you with favor and T give you peace.
C Amen.
644 THE CHURCH’S ONE FOUNDATION
1 The Church’s one foundation
Is Jesus Christ, her Lord;
She is His new creation
By water and the Word.
From heav’n He came and sought her
To be His holy bride;
With His own blood He bought her,
And for her life He died.
Is Jesus Christ, her Lord;
She is His new creation
By water and the Word.
From heav’n He came and sought her
To be His holy bride;
With His own blood He bought her,
And for her life He died.
2 Elect from ev’ry nation,
Yet one o’er all the earth;
Her charter of salvation:
One Lord, one faith, one birth.
One holy name she blesses,
Partakes one holy food,
And to one hope she presses
With ev’ry grace endued.
Yet one o’er all the earth;
Her charter of salvation:
One Lord, one faith, one birth.
One holy name she blesses,
Partakes one holy food,
And to one hope she presses
With ev’ry grace endued.
3 Though with a scornful wonder
The world sees her oppressed,
By schisms rent asunder,
By heresies distressed,
Yet saints their watch are keeping;
Their cry goes up, “How long?”
And soon the night of weeping
Shall be the morn of song.
The world sees her oppressed,
By schisms rent asunder,
By heresies distressed,
Yet saints their watch are keeping;
Their cry goes up, “How long?”
And soon the night of weeping
Shall be the morn of song.
4 Through toil and tribulation
And tumult of her war
She waits the consummation
Of peace forevermore
Till with the vision glorious
Her longing eyes are blest,
And the great Church victorious
Shall be the Church at rest.
And tumult of her war
She waits the consummation
Of peace forevermore
Till with the vision glorious
Her longing eyes are blest,
And the great Church victorious
Shall be the Church at rest.
5 Yet she on earth has union
With God, the Three in One,
And mystic sweet communion
With those whose rest is won.
O blessèd heav’nly chorus!
Lord, save us by Your grace
That we, like saints before us,
May see You face to face.
With God, the Three in One,
And mystic sweet communion
With those whose rest is won.
O blessèd heav’nly chorus!
Lord, save us by Your grace
That we, like saints before us,
May see You face to face.
Text: Public domain
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Divine Service, Setting Four 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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