Worship Service for Midweek of Lent 4
Rev. Gregory Mech | March 17, 2021 | Midweek of Lent 4 | Lenten Worship Service | Immanuel Lutheran Church – Joplin, Missouri | 7:00 pm
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Special thanks to all who helped to make this broadcast possible today:
Rev. Gregory Mech, DCE Jason Glaskey, organist Betty Lingenfelter, the COVID Committee and Board of Elders.
RETURN FROM DENIAL
In one of the classic hymns associated with the season of Lent, Scottish-born writer James Montgomery, author of over four hundred hymns, penned this thoughtful prayer: “In the hour of trial, Jesus, plead for me Lest by base denial I depart from Thee” (LW 511:1). Although the language of the hymn reflects the era in which it was written almost two hundred years ago, the central concern is as valid today as it was when the stanza was written. The phrase “base denial” calls to mind the disciple Peter, who disowns his Lord while in the courtyard of the house of the high priest. At times in our lives, we may be tempted to deny our Lord and to act as though our faith is not central to who we are. It is then that we can draw strength from remembering the forgiveness won for us by our suffering Lord, who calls us even from “base denial” to return to Him.
March 17, 2021 — Midweek of Lent 4
Stand
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare Your praise.
Make haste, O God, to deliver me;
make haste to help me, O Lord.
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.
Praise to You, O Christ, Lamb of our salvation.
Psalm 118:19-29
Open to me the gates of righteousness,
that I may enter through them
and give thanks to the Lord.
This is the gate of the Lord;
the righteous shall enter through it.
I thank You that You have answered me
and have become my salvation.
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day that the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Save us, we pray, O Lord!
O Lord, we pray, give us success!
Blessèd is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
We bless You from the house of the Lord.
The Lord is God,
and He has made His light to shine upon us.
You are my God, and I will give thanks to You;
You are my God; I will extol You.
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
for His steadfast love endures forever!
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.
Sit
HYMN “On My Heart Imprint Your Image” 422
On my heart imprint Your image,
Blessed 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.
READING Isaiah 59:1-3, 12-13
A reading from Isaiah, the fifty-ninth chapter.
Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,
or His ear dull, that it cannot hear;
but your iniquities have made a separation
between you and your God,
and your sins have hidden His face from you
so that He does not hear.
For your hands are defiled with blood
and your fingers with iniquity;
your lips have spoken lies;
your tongue mutters wickedness.
For our transgressions are multiplied before You,
and our sins testify against us;
for our transgressions are with us,
and we know our iniquities:
transgressing, and denying the Lord,
and turning back from following our God,
speaking oppression and revolt,
conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.
O Lord, have mercy on us.
Thanks be to God.
SECOND READING 1 Peter 5:6-10
A reading from First Peter, the fifth chapter.
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you. Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.
O Lord, have mercy on us.
Thanks be to God.
HOLY GOSPEL Luke 22:54-62
A reading from St. Luke, the twenty-second chapter.
Then they seized Him and led Him away, bringing Him into the high priest’s house, and Peter was following at a distance. And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. Then a servant girl, seeing him as he sat in the light and looking closely at him, said, “This man also was with Him.” But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.” And a little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” And after an interval of about an hour still another insisted, saying, “Certainly this man also was with Him, for he too is a Galilean.” But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how He had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.
O Lord, have mercy on us.
Thanks be to God.
LENT RESPONSORY
Deliver me, O Lord, my God, for You are the God of my salvation.
Rescue me from my enemies, protect me from those who rise against me.
In You, O Lord, do I put my trust, leave me not, O Lord, my God.
Rescue me from my enemies, protect me from those who rise against me.
Deliver me, O Lord, my God, for You are the God of my salvation.
Rescue me from my enemies, protect me from those who rise against me.
HYMN “Thee Will I Love, My Strength, My Tower” 694: 1,2,4,5
Thee will I love, my strength, my tower;
Thee will I love, my hope, my joy.
Thee will I love with all my power,
With ardor time shall never destroy.
Thee will I love, O Light divine,
So long as life is mine.
Thee will I love, my life, my Savior,
Who art my best and truest friend.
Thee will I love and praise forever,
For never shall Thy kindness end.
Thee will I love with all my heart—
Thou my Redeemer art!
O keep me watchful, then, and humble;
Permit me nevermore to stray.
Uphold me when my feet would stumble,
And keep me on the narrow way.
Fill all my nature with Thy light,
O Radiance strong and bright.
Thee will I love, my crown of gladness;
Thee will I love, my God and Lord.
Amid the darkest depths of sadness,
And not for hope of high reward.
For Thine own sake, O Light divine,
So long as life is mine.
SERMON
Stand
ANTIPHON
P = pastor; C = congregation; M = men and boys; W = women and girls
P Let my prayer rise before You as incense,
C and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
MAGNIFICAT
C My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior;
W for He has regarded the lowliness of His handmaiden. For behold, from this day all generations will call me blessed.
M For the Mighty One has done great things to me, and holy is His name;
W and His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation.
M He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
W He has cast down the mighty from their thrones and has exalted the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich He has sent empty away.
M He has helped His servant Israel in remembrance of His mercy as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever.
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.
KYRIE
Lord, have mercy; Christ, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.
LORD’S PRAYER
COLLECTS
O Lord, hear my prayer.
And let my cry come to You.
COLLECT OF THE DAY
Lord God, Your Gospel Word supports us through both good times and bad. Forgive us for the times when our words deny You. Restore us, so that the words we speak bless both You and the people entrusted to our care; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
COLLECT FOR LENT
Faithful God, through the ancient prophets You call us to return to You with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Let these Lenten days be a time when, remembering how You relentlessly return to us in mercy, we return also to You; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
COLLECT AT EVENING
Almighty God, You have made Your light to shine upon us throughout the day. Now that the day is over and night has come, help us to rest in knowing that Your steadfast love endures forever; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
COLLECT FOR PEACE
O God, You delight in showing mercy to sinners. Amidst the turmoil we create when we wander from You, restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish us in Your peace; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
Stand
BENEDICAMUS
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
BENEDICTION
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Amen.
Acknowledgments
Vespers from Lutheran Service Book. 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.
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