Service for 2nd Sunday in Lent

 

Manuscript for the service for Feb 28

 Second Sunday in Lent

P In the name of the Father and of the T Son and of the Holy Spirit.

C Amen.

 

435 Come to Calvary’s Holy Mountain

1 Come to Calv’ry’s holy mountain,
    Sinners, ruined by the fall;
Here a pure and healing fountain
    Flows for you, for me, for all,
In a full, perpetual tide,
Opened when our Savior died.

2 Come in poverty and meanness,
    Come defiled, without, within;
From infection and uncleanness,
    From the leprosy of sin,
Wash your robes and make them white;
Ye shall walk with God in light.

3 Come in sorrow and contrition,
    Wounded, impotent, and blind;
Here the guilty, free remission,
    Here the troubled, peace may find.
Health this fountain will restore;
They that drink shall thirst no more.

4 They that drink shall live forever;
    ’Tis a soul-renewing flood.
God is faithful; God will never
    Break His covenant of blood,
Signed when our Redeemer died,
Sealed when He was glorified.

Text: Public domain

 

Psalm 121

¹I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
²My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

³He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
⁴Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

⁵The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade on your right hand.
⁶The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.

⁷The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
⁸The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.

 

Collect of the Day

P Let us pray.

O God, You see that of ourselves we have no strength. By Your mighty power defend us from all adversities that may happen to the body and from all evil thoughts that may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. 

Epistle Romans 5:1–5

¹Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. ²Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. ³More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, ⁴and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, ⁵and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

A This is the Word of the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

Holy Gospel Matthew 15:21–28

P The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, the fifteenth chapter.

C Glory be to Thee, O Lord.

²¹Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. ²²And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” ²³But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” ²⁴He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” ²⁵But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” ²⁶And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” ²⁷She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” ²⁸Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.

P This is the Gospel of the Lord.

C Praise be to Thee, O Christ.

 

Apostles’ Creed

Sermon

In the Gospel reading this morning, Jesus says to the mother of a very sick child, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly (Matthew 15:28).

These past couple of days, with slightly warmer weather, I’ve been able to take the dog for a walk on the trail again. He’s slowed down noticeably over the winter. On the last stretch home, he’s huffing and puffing, limping a little to keep up. Clearly that old dog needs more exercise. And yes, I suppose, I do to.

Exercise is good for the body. There is an exercise that’s good for the soul. It’s called testing or tribulation. And we are blessed when the Lord brings it to us.

The thing about my dog, Moses, is that he loves the exercise. He is visibly overjoyed when I put on his leash and we head outdoors. But we humans, on the other hand, usually react with grumbling and complaining when we have stress applied to our lives. “Why?” we moan. Why does the Lord allow such difficult times as these? When will this pandemic be brought to an end? We’re getting sick of it. Why is He so slow to fix these present troubles? Why does it have to be so frustrating to get anything done, especially with the restrictions placed on us?”  

And then after this present plague, what’s going to come next? We seem to be surrounded on all sides by people and influencers proposing all sorts of weird ideas that go straight against the order God created: blurring distinctions between male and female; despising marriage and family; discouraging wholesome work and enterprise; stirring up tensions between people because of skin color or language. Why can’t God restore sanity and common sense?

I’m sure each of you have your own individual frustrations and pains you could add to this.

The dog won’t get stronger or healthier just lying in his kennel. Athlete won’t improve their game sitting on the couch. Why should we think that there’s something wrong when we’re called on to put our faith to the test.

A woman came to Jesus and pleaded to Jesus for help with her daughter. Crying, she said, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” And Matthew 15:23 says, “But he did not answer her a word.” Wouldn’t that be discouraging? You pray to the Lord and nothing. Not a word. Have you ever had that? God doesn’t answer. It couldn’t be that God isn’t even listening, could it?

In Psalm 121 it says, “Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.” Well, the Canaanite woman counted on this. So she persisted. She wrestled with him verbally, like Jacob wrestled with the Lord all night long.

Faith is an enduring, persistent thing. It clings to what has been promised and does not give up, even when everything you see indicates you should give up -- even if your human reason and mind says, it’s no use -- and even if the world says it’s foolish -- faith endures.

The disciples begged Jesus, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” The lesson Jesus was teaching was for the disciples too and for all of us. When you see someone who believes in Jesus, and is having what looks like a horrible time in life, great misfortune, great anguish, don’t try to look the other way. And don’t pity them. Trust God, that he gives such things to test and strengthen character and faith.

This conversation, this lesson, apparently lasted only a few minutes. And Jesus answered her plea, and gave her a blessing we all should hope to hear, “O woman, great is your faith!” 

She got her answer, Her daughter was healed instantly. The purpose behind it all was revealed. This horrible affliction was for the growth and strengthening of her faith. As our faith is tested, it grows. It grows in understanding and it grows in trust. You can’t really appreciate how good it is that Jesus loves you until you know how much you need him. And it takes hardship to learn how weak you really are. Jesus loves me this I know. Little ones to him belong, they are weak but he is strong.

We can’t know if this woman realized it or not, but the purpose behind her troubles and testing was for the good of others. This ordeal gave her the opportunity to make such a strong example and confession of faith. That was a lesson for the disciples, for her whole community, for us. We can learn from her how to suffer, how to be tested. Or as the Lord calls it “bearing your cross”.

There’s the way to think of your troubles and your sorrows: Bear your cross. With that phrase, you can endure with Jesus. You can share with him and his troubles and sorrows. Don’t be reluctant or timid to consider yourself at that level, sharing in the suffering of Jesus. It’s he that says you do. Rejoice that you share in his suffering, because you will also share in His glory.

That’s his gracious invitation to sinners beaten down by life and life’s troubles. You may feel like you can’t even get a dog’s share of the scraps. Your Lord compassionately invites you, “Follow me. Follow me through suffering, even to death. I have blessings in store for you. Not scraps on the floor. But a feast at my table. I know suffering. I endured. With me you will too. I will be with you all through it,” says the Lord. “And I will be there at the conclusion. And you will be with me, forever and ever. Amen.”

Prayer of the Church

P Lord God, heavenly Father, we implore You by Your Holy Spirit to strengthen our hearts and confirm our faith and hope in Your grace and mercy, so that although we have reason to fear because of our conscience, our sin and our unworthiness, we may nevertheless, with the woman of Canaan, hold fast to Your grace, and in every trial and temptation find You a present help and refuge; Lord, in your mercy,

C Hear our prayer.

P Bestow your grace on all nations of the earth.  Bless especially our country and its inhabitants and all who are in authority.  Let your glory dwell in our land that mercy and truth, righteousness and peace may everywhere abound.  We commend to you the care of all our schools and ask you to grant that our children may grow in useful knowledge and Christian virtue and bring forth wholesome fruits of life.  Lord, in your mercy,

C Hear our prayer.

P Bestow your grace on all nations of the earth.  Bless especially our country and its inhabitants and all who are in authority.  Let your glory dwell in our land that mercy and truth, righteousness and peace may everywhere abound.  We commend to you the care of all our schools and ask you to grant that our children may grow in useful knowledge and Christian virtue and bring forth wholesome fruits of life.  Lord, in your mercy,

C Hear our prayer.

P 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 everyone in their rightful calling, and let all useful arts flourish among us.  Be the God and Father of the widow and the fatherless, the helper of the sick and needy, and the comforter of the forsaken and distressed.  Lord, in your mercy,

C Hear our prayer.

P 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, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

C Amen.

 

Lord’s Prayer

 

Benedicamus

A Bless we the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

 

Benediction

P The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you.

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and T give you peace.

C Amen.

 

 

Acknowledgments

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 © 2021 Concordia Publishing House.

Sunday School lesson for Feb. 28

 click here to be directed to a video presentation of today's Sunday School lesson from Genesis 42-45, Joseph forgives his brothers.

Lent devotion for Feb 27

 

Lent devotion for Feb 26

 

Lent devotion for Feb 25

 

Service for Wednesday of the First Week in Lent

 

Manuscript for Lent 1 Wed

 + First Lent Midweek Service +

 

422 ON MY HEART IMPRINT YOUR IMAGE

1 On my heart imprint Your image,
    Blessèd Jesus, King of grace,
That life’s riches, cares, and pleasures
    Never may Your work erase;
Let the clear inscription be:
Jesus, crucified for me,
    Is my life, my hope’s foundation,
    And my glory and salvation!

Text: Public domain

 

PSALM 23

¹The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
²He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
³He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

⁴Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

⁵You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

 

 

READING Luke 22:1–38

¹Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the Passover. ²And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to put him to death, for they feared the people.

³Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. ⁴He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them. ⁵And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. ⁶So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.

⁷Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. ⁸So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat it.” ⁹They said to him, “Where will you have us prepare it?” ¹⁰He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters ¹¹and tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ ¹²And he will show you a large upper room furnished; prepare it there.” ¹³And they went and found it just as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

¹⁴And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. ¹⁵And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ¹⁶For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” ¹⁷And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. ¹⁸For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” ¹⁹And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” ²⁰And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. ²¹But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. ²²For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” ²³And they began to question one another, which of them it could be who was going to do this.

²⁴A dispute also arose among them, as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. ²⁵And he said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors. ²⁶But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves. ²⁷For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.

²⁸“You are those who have stayed with me in my trials, ²⁹and I assign to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom, ³⁰that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

³¹“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, ³²but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” ³³Peter said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.” ³⁴Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.”

³⁵And he said to them, “When I sent you out with no moneybag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “Nothing.” ³⁶He said to them, “But now let the one who has a moneybag take it, and likewise a knapsack. And let the one who has no sword sell his cloak and buy one. ³⁷For I tell you that this Scripture must be fulfilled in me: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors.’ For what is written about me has its fulfillment.” ³⁸And they said, “Look, Lord, here are two swords.” And he said to them, “It is enough.”

 

 

CATECHISM REVIEW

What is the Sacrament of the Altar?

It is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ under the bread and wine, instituted by Christ Himself for us Christians to eat and to drink.

What is the benefit of this eating and drinking?

These words, “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins,” show us that in the Sacrament forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given us through these words. For where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.

 

 

SERMON

Throughout these Wednesdays in Lent we will be reading the passion of Jesus Christ from Luke’s Gospel and a section of our Small Catechism. Now when we bring up the Catechism, it’s not because it has the same weight as the Bible, but because it helps us understand the Bible and it will help us explain the Bible to others.

The Catechism teaches us, for example, how to think about the words Jesus said on the night He was betrayed. He took bread. He said, “This is my body.” He took the cup. He said, “This is my blood”. So the Catechism has us say, This Sacrament “is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ under the bread and wine.”  The outsider looking in at our communion sees us eating bread and drinking wine. We confess and proclaim we have the body and blood of Christ. It IS the body and the blood. Is means is, not more, not less than “is”. Jesus said, “This is my body” - There’s not something more to his words than that, as though he were saying, “this is a ritual symbol of me.” “This is a token for you to have of me, while I’m really up in heaven, completely separate and apart from you.” Is means is. Nothing more, and nothing less than is. Jesus didn’t say, “This is kinda like my body” or “this represents my body.” He said, “This is my body.” So also He says, “This is my blood.” He knew exactly what it would take to save us, so He gave up His body and shed his blood on the cross. He knows exactly what it takes to save us now, so He gives us His body and His blood. That’s what it is.

The Lord wants you to believe Him, to trust what He says, to take him at his word.

Also, the Catechism teaches us how we ought to think of the purpose of our coming to the Lord’s Supper. Those who don’t share our faith may look at our practice of Holy Communion and imagine that this peculiar ritual is our secret initiation rite, or perhaps our way of showing each other and showing God that we are good people, holy people, better than other people.

But when we speak about this as the Catechism speaks, we can tell each other and others what this ritual is all about, what good it does, what benefit the Lord promises those who take it. With the Catechism we say, “in the Sacrament forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given us.”

We want this. We long to come to the supper Jesus provides, not as a way of showing our goodness, but because we recognize our own problems, weaknesses and sins and we seek help for them. So we go to Jesus who died for us -- who gave us forgiveness, life and salvation. We want this. And Jesus wants this for us. You can hear the somber urgency he had this night, to have this last supper with his disciples, to give them this last word.

You can tell that the Apostle’s caught on that the Lord wanted them to do this, and pass it on to others so they would do it, too. In four places in the Apostles’ scriptures they record this supper, this evening meal. Here in Luke’s Gospel, also in Matthew and Luke and St. Paul records it in 1 Corinthians 11.

When we meditate on this holy Supper of the Lord, we consider it as past, present and future. In the past, on that night when He was betrayed, our Lord made the arrangements to be with His dear disciples. He said, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” Every time you eat and drink of the Holy Supper you proclaim the Lord’s suffering and death. Communion simply means a time and place for sharing. The Lord invites His disciples to share in this communion, to share in his suffering and cross and to share in the fruits of the cross, that is, the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. That was then, this is now and for every generation of Christian in between Christ gives his body and blood in this supper. He is so good for us, our cup overflows with his goodness and mercy. And the greatest goodness of all is that he gives Himself, body and blood. That’s for you now and in the Coming Sundays when He does it again for us. But the supper is about the future, too. There will be a final supper, the last evening meal, when the sun goes away for the last time, it will not need to come up again because the Lord will be the light for all the universe. There will be a feast in that Kingdom forever and ever. Jesus was looking forward to that on that night He was betrayed. He longed to have the supper and to drink the wine in the Kingdom of eternity. He longed to pull all His faithful into that eternity with Him.

Last Wednesday we heard our Lord Jesus say, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” A treasure awaits you children of God in the Kingdom to come. Treasure what you have now, especially, your Lord who so graciously gives you his body and blood, forgiveness, life and salvation. Amen.

 

COLLECT FOR PEACE

L O God, from whom come all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works, give to us, Your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, that our hearts may be set to obey Your commandments and also that we, being defended from the fear of our enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

C Amen.

 

LORD’S PRAYER LSB 251

L Taught by our Lord and trusting His promises, we are bold to pray:

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 LSB 252

L Let us bless the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

 

BENEDICTION LSB 252

P The almighty and merciful Lord, the Father, the T Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve you.

C Amen.

 

 

Lent devotion for Feb. 24

 

Daily Lent devotion for Feb 23

 

Daily Lent devotion for Feb 22

 

Service for the First Sunday in Lent

 

Manuscript for 1st Sunday in Lent

 P In the name of the Father and of the T Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 425 WHEN I SURVEY THE WONDROUS CROSS

1 When I survey the wondrous cross
    On which the Prince of Glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss
    And pour contempt on all my pride.

2 Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast
    Save in the death of Christ, my God;
All the vain things that charm me most,
    I sacrifice them to His blood.

3 See, from His head, His hands, His feet
    Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet
    Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

4 Were the whole realm of nature mine,
    That were a tribute far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
    Demands my soul, my life, my all!

Text: Public domain

COLLECT OF THE DAY

P O Lord God, You led Your ancient people through the wilderness and brought them to the promised land. Guide the people of Your Church that following our Savior we may walk through the wilderness of this world toward the glory of the world to come; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

OLD TESTAMENT READING Genesis 3:1–21

¹Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.

He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” ²And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, ³but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” ⁴But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. ⁵For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” ⁶So 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. ⁷Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

⁸And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. ⁹But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” ¹⁰And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” ¹¹He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” ¹²The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” ¹³Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

¹⁴The Lord God said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,
cursed are you above all livestock
and above all beasts of the field;
on your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
¹⁵I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.”

¹⁶To the woman he said,

“I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;
in pain you shall bring forth children.
Your desire shall be for your husband,
and he shall rule over you.”

¹⁷And to Adam he said,

“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
and have eaten of the tree
of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
¹⁸thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
¹⁹By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.”

²⁰The man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living. ²¹And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.

A This is the Word of the Lord.

EPISTLE Hebrews 4:14–16

¹⁴Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. ¹⁵For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. ¹⁶Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

A This is the Word of the Lord.

HOLY GOSPEL

P The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew, the fourth chapter.

¹Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. ²And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. ³And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” ⁴But he answered, “It is written,

“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

⁵Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple ⁶and said 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,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”

⁷Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” ⁸Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. ⁹And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” ¹⁰Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written,

“‘You shall worship the Lord your God
and him only shall you serve.’”

¹¹Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.

P This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Apostles’ CREED

Genesis 3:1-2

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.  He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”

Matthew 4:3

And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”

These two passages fit well together.  

The temptations of Satan. One time it worked. One time it didn’t.

In each situation there was a temptation to doubt what God had said. “Eve,  God didn’t really say it’d be a bad thing to eat that fruit, did he?” God had just told Adam and Eve about that tree. It was really the only rule they had to follow. Don’t eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The devil would have Eve question those words, and doubt them.

And to Jesus the devil said, “God doesn’t really say you’re His Son, does he?”

Now, immediately before the temptation of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel is the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan where God speaks from heaven, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” The devil would have Jesus  question those words, and doubt them.

And another thing about these temptations, they are each a temptation to take matters into your own hand.

“Go ahead and eat and then you’ll know good and evil. You’ll be like God.”

“Go ahead and make yourself some bread if you’re hungry. You can do it. Then you don’t have to rely on your Father in heaven to take care of your needs.”

We should recognize how many of the temptations are similar to this:

1. To doubt what God says

2. To take matters into our own hands

When we are tempted by the appetites of our bodies, lust, greed, gluttony, drunkenness or for sensual pleasures that our out of bounds in God’s good order for our lives, we will be tempted to doubt what God says. The devil will tempt us to take matters into our own hands and say, God’s not going to give you those nice things, you have to just take them. You deserve to have them.

When we feel bitter towards our neighbor, the tempter will tell us, “Yes, it is said that your supposed to love your neighbor as yourself, but that can’t mean everyone. You can’t include the jerks you’re surrounded with in that . You have to use your own judgement here. It’s just not reasonable to be nice to everyone, to want what’s best for everyone. It’s better if those people get what’s coming to them.

Little temptations like that lead to bigger temptations, and to bigger, more dangerous doubts. The devil would like to tempt you, “Is there anything after death? Are you’re sins really forgiven? All of them?

When Adam and Eve were tempted in this way, they took matters into their own hands. They thought about it, for a bit, and they chose for themselves what was good and what was evil, what was right and what was wrong.

Whereas, when Jesus was tempted, He trusted the promises of God. He put the word of God to use.

We can see every day how successful Satan has become in getting people to doubt God’s Word.  He whispers into unsuspecting, unprepared ears, “Did God really say?”

l Did he create the heavens and the earth from nothing?

l Were those old stories in the Bible true or made up?

l Is Jesus the only way, or just one of many ways to the same goal?

Once he starts to raise doubts in minds about what God has said, it is easy to take the next step, and push people to take matters into their own hands, and come up with their own definitions and criteria for what is to believed, what is to be held sacred, what is to be true, good, right, wise.

And when the devil gets people close to doubting God’s word, or changing God’s word, to make it say what they want it to say, then he goes a little further by making them big promises. To Eve, the promise of Satan was that their eyes would be open and they would be like God, knowing good and evil. To Jesus, the promise of Satan was the glory, the power, the splendor, as if it was Satan’s to give. Satan is the father of lies. He never lies more than when he promises good things to those who abandon what God says, “There will be clearer understanding,” he says. “There will be more pleasure and happiness.”

When we are tempted to reject the word of God, have the example of our Lord Jesus to follow. Trust the Lord and use His word. It is true. And it is powerful. It has power to make Satan fall, power to kill our sinful aspirations within, power to deliver us and keep us.

That’s what Jesus did. He kept God’s word perfectly. He was perfect because Adam and Eve could not be. He was tempted and endured, because Adam and Eve could not, nor can we. He has done it for us. Jesus endured temptations perfectly, the way we never could.

You have probably been tempted before, and you have probably failed a time or two at least. Where you have failed, Jesus Christ is your Victory.

The devil may have tricked you once or twice into disobedience and not keeping God’s word. Where you have disobeyed, Jesus Christ is your Obedience.

Doubt may seem at times to be beyond your ability to overcome. Where you have doubted, Jesus Christ is your Truth.

Amen.

 

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH

O almighty God, heavenly Father, we come to your throne of grace, humbly, yet confidently, because your Son Jesus Christ our Savior, who sits at your right hand, has graciously invited us to follow him. We thank you that you have given us a great high priest, Jesus Christ, who knows our infirmities, having carried them, who understands our temptations, having endured them, and who learned obedience by the things that he suffered. Lord, in your mercy,

O Lamb of God, the sacrifice slain for the sins of the world, you have become the Author of eternal salvation to all who follow you. Continually guide us in your way. Help us so to trust you, that hearing your voice we may find the true joy of conforming our ways to your way, our wills to your will. Lord, in your mercy,

O Holy Spirit, if we are ever led into the wilderness of temptation, deliver us by your power and save us from all evil. In our times of testing, don’t let us fall from your grace. Help us to wrestle daily against the powers of darkness in every circumstance or position in life. Overthrow the tempter, Satan, in all his assaults on our bodies, minds and souls. Help us to stand up against the world. Teach us to put to death the passions of our flesh, by the example of our Lord Jesus, and the power of your holy Word, Lord in your mercy,

Gracious Lord, You have so ordered things to permit us, your church, to be workers together with you in the saving of sinners. Grant that we may receive grace for our own sanctification before we seek it for others. If there be any in our midst who have not taken up your call to follow you, O Lord, by your power and grace, lead them by repentance, to believe the Gospel and receive your salvation, Lord, in your mercy,

As the angels ministered to Jesus, so we humbly ask you to send them to help all your people to bring them safely through this world to that eternal kingdom which you have prepared for all who love you, through Jesus Christ our Lord, in whose name we pray all these things. 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.

 BENEDICAMUS

A Bless we the Lord.

C Thanks be to God.

 

BENEDICTION

P The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you.

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and T give you peace.

C Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

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 © 2021 Concordia Publishing House.