Ash Wednesday 3/9/25
Ash Wednesday Service pm. 3.5.25 PDF
ASH WEDNESDAY
The First Day of Lent
✠ ✠ ✠
March 5, 2025
Note about the service:
Ash Wednesday is a solemn day beginning our Lenten journey with Jesus to the cross. On this day we hear the call to submit ourselves to Lent’s discipline, trusting that it will lead us to growth in faith and love.
Lent’s seven weeks include intense reflection upon the suffering and death of Christ. They also lead us to hear his words afresh. The sermons for this year’s midweek Lenten services will reflect upon the great prayer Jesus gave to his disciples known to us as the Lord’s Prayer or the Our Father. Our hope is that they will lead us to pray this prayer with greater insight and devotion.
May God bless our worship and prayer – this evening and throughout this season.
PRELUDE Savior, When in Dust to Thee Setting: Gerald Near
ENTRANCE HYMN Savior, When in Dust to Thee LSB 419
1 Savior, when in dust to Thee
Low we bow the_adoring knee;
When, repentant, to the skies
Scarce we lift our weeping eyes;
O, by all Thy pains and woe
Suffered once for us below,
Bending from Thy throne on high,
Hear our penitential cry!
2 By Thy helpless infant years,
By Thy life of want and tears,
By Thy days of deep distress
In the savage wilderness,
By the dread, mysterious hour
Of the_insulting tempter’s pow’r,
Turn, O turn a fav’ring eye;
Hear our penitential cry!
3 By Thine hour of dire despair,
By Thine agony of prayer,
By the cross, the nail, the thorn,
Piercing spear, and torturing scorn,
By the gloom that veiled the skies
O’er the dreadful sacrifice,
Listen to our humble sigh;
Hear our penitential cry!
4 By Thy deep expiring groan,
By the sad sepulchral stone,
By the vault whose dark abode
Held in vain the rising God,
O, from earth to heav’n restored,
Mighty, reascended Lord,
Bending from Thy throne on high,
Hear our penitential cry!
ADDRESS TO WORSHIPERS
Dear brothers and sisters of our Lord Jesus Christ, on this day the Church begins a holy season of prayerful and penitential reflection. Our attention is especially directed to the holy sufferings and death of our Lord Jesus Christ.
From ancient times the season of Lent has been kept as a time of special devotion, self-denial, and humble repentance born of a faithful heart that dwells confidently on His Word and draws from it life and hope. Let us pray that our dear Father in heaven, for the sake of His beloved Son and in the power of His Holy Spirit, might richly bless this Lententide for us so that we may come to Easter with glad hearts and keep the feast in sincerity and truth.
LITANY (Kneel)
O Lord,
have mercy.
O Christ,
have mercy.
O Lord,
have mercy.
O Christ,
hear us.
God the Father, in heaven,
have mercy.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
have mercy.
God the Holy Spirit,
have mercy.
Be gracious to us.
Spare us, good Lord.
Be gracious to us.
Help us, good Lord.
By the mystery of Your holy incarnation;
by Your holy nativity;
by Your baptism, fasting, and temptation;
by Your agony and bloody sweat;
by Your cross and Passion;
by Your precious death and burial;
by Your glorious resurrection and ascension;
and by the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter:
Help us, good Lord.
In all time of our tribulation;
in all time of our prosperity;
in the hour of death;
and in the day of judgment:
Help us, good Lord.
We poor sinners implore You
to hear us, O Lord.
To prosper the preaching of Your Word;
to bless our prayer and meditation;
to strengthen and preserve us in the true faith;
to give heart to our sorrow and strength to our repentance:
We implore You to hear us, good Lord.
To draw all to Yourself;
to bless those who are instructed in the faith;
to watch over and console the poor, the sick, the distressed,
the lonely, the forsaken, the abandoned, and all who stand in
need of our prayers; to give abundant blessing to all works of mercy; and to have mercy on us all:
We implore You to hear us, good Lord.
To turn our hearts to You;
to turn the hearts of our enemies, persecutors, and
slanderers; and graciously to hear our prayers:
We implore You to hear us, good Lord.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God,
we implore You to hear us.
Christ, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world,
have mercy.
Christ, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world,
have mercy.
Christ, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world,
grant us Your peace.
O Christ,
hear us.
O Lord,
have mercy.
O Christ,
have mercy.
O Lord,
have mercy. Amen.
IMPOSITION OF ASHES (Be seated)
Those wishing to receive ashes on their forehead as an acknowledgement of mortality and need for repentance should come forward in two lines. Psalm 51 can also be read at this time.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION (Stand)
Accomplish in us, O God, the work of Your salvation,
that we may show forth Your glory in the world.
By the cross and Passion of Your Son, our Lord,
bring us with all Your saints to the joy of His resurrection.
O God, You desire not the death of sinners, but rather that they turn from their wickedness and live. We implore You to have compassion on the frailty of our mortal nature, for we acknowledge that we are dust and to dust we shall return. Mercifully pardon our sins that we may obtain the promises You have laid up for those who are repentant; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
O almighty God, merciful Father, I, a poor, miserable sinner, confess unto You all my sins and iniquities with which I have ever offended You and justly deserved Your temporal and eternal punishment. But I am heartily sorry for them and sincerely repent of them, and I pray You of Your boundless mercy and for the sake of the holy, innocent, bitter sufferings and death of Your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, to be gracious and merciful to me, a poor sinful being.
HOLY ABSOLUTION
Upon this your confession, I, by virtue of my office as a called and ordained servant of the Word, announce the grace of God unto all of you, and in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the ✠ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
HYMN Jesus Sinners Doth Receive Sts. 1-5 LSB 609
1 Jesus sinners doth receive;
Oh, may all this saying ponder
Who in sin’s delusions live
And from God and heaven wander!
Here is hope for all who grieve:
Jesus sinners doth receive.
2 We deserve but grief and shame,
Yet His words, rich grace revealing,
Pardon, peace, and life proclaim;
Here our ills have perfect healing.
Firmly in these words believe:
Jesus sinners doth receive.
3 Sheep that from the fold did stray
No true shepherd e’er forsaketh;
Weary souls that lost their way
Christ, the Shepherd, gently taketh
In His arms that they may live:
Jesus sinners doth receive.
4 I, a sinner, come to Thee
With a penitent confession.
Savior, mercy show to me;
Grant for all my sins remission.
Let these words my soul relieve:
Jesus sinners doth receive.
5 Oh, how blest it is to know:
Were as scarlet my transgression,
It shall be as white as snow
By Thy blood and bitter passion;
For these words I now believe:
Jesus sinners doth receive.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God,
You hate nothing you have made and you forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and honest hearts, so that truly repenting of our sins, we may obtain from you, the God of mercy, full pardon and forgiveness; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, of God, now and forever. Amen.
✠ ✠ ✠
SERVICE OF THE WORD
FIRST READING (Be seated) Joel 2:12–19
“Yet even now,” declares the LORD,
“return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
and rend your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the LORD your God,
for he is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;
and he relents over disaster.
Who knows whether he will not turn and relent,
and leave a blessing behind him,
a grain offering and a drink offering
for the LORD your God?
Blow the trumpet in Zion;
consecrate a fast;
call a solemn assembly;
gather the people.
Consecrate the congregation;
assemble the elders;
gather the children,
even nursing infants.
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
and the bride her chamber.
Between the vestibule and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep
and say, “Spare your people, O LORD,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
a byword among the nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”
Then the LORD became jealous for his land
and had pity on his people.
The LORD answered and said to his people,
“Behold, I am sending to you
grain, wine, and oil,
and you will be satisfied;
and I will no more make you
a reproach among the nations.
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
ANTHEM Jubilation Choir Behold the Lamb of God Setting: Healey Willan
Behold the Lamb of God,
which taketh away the sin of the world.
Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.
He was wounded for our transgressions,
he was bruised for our iniquities.
SECOND READING Ephesians 3:14-19
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOSPEL VERSE (Stand) LSB 422
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!
GOSPEL READING Matthew 6:1-15
The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew the 6th chapter.
Glory to You, O Lord.
“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to You, O Christ.
SERMON (Be seated)
Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus. Amen. Dear friends in Christ:
Those last words of Jesus in the Gospel lesson just read always give us pause. Or at least they should. Jesus said: “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
We’re troubled by these words because we don’t always live them. Forgiving others as we should is something we often fail to do.
And not only this, but we also find ourselves questioning these words of Jesus. We wonder if his command is even fair since forgiving others can be so hard and sometimes doesn’t seem right.
Jesus knows that forgiving others is difficult. And this is no doubt why he adds this extra statement to what he already taught us in his prayer. He wants to make sure we understand its importance.
But there’s also one other reason this statement of Jesus troubles us. And that’s because it sounds like maybe God’s forgiveness is conditional, based upon whether we forgive others. This concerns us not only because we have trouble forgiving but because we also know that many other scriptures tell us that we are forgiven by God’s grace alone, through faith alone.
I’ll speak to this question of a seeming contradiction in a few weeks, on the upcoming Wednesday when we look at the fifth petition of the Lord’s Prayer. Our midweek services each week will focus on one of the petitions of this great prayer of our Lord Jesus, and I hope you will join us.
But for today, let me just say that there is no contradiction here, and that Jesus’ command can be understood rightly within the scripture’s doctrine of salvation. A great explanation of this, as you will discover, is given in our Catechism.
Our calling today, however, on this Ash Wednesday, is to hear this command of God and remember that we often fail to keep it. We regularly fail to forgive others as we should. And not only that, but we also fail to follow God’s other commands as well. We fail daily – by doing things we shouldn’t and by not doing the things we should.
This is why, in our opening liturgy today, we all got down on our knees and confessed that we are “poor miserable sinners.” We are poor when it comes to keeping God’s commands. And these sins of ours lead to misery – both the misery of those we sin against and our own misery as well. Sin is unhealthy, and its consequences always weigh us down.
And I know… none of us like to think about these things. We would much prefer to dwell on the good we do or the happiness we enjoy. But our sins won’t let us turn away. They keep calling out to us. Sometimes they call through the guilt we feel. At other times they call through the consequences we experience. And sometimes both.
Yes, there are times when we think we’re getting away with our sin. We can be pretty good at covering our tracks. But when we think this way, we’re fooling ourselves. Because God knows.
God calls us to repent of our sins. And the first step in repentance is to admit our sin and to acknowledge our responsibility for it.
This may sound like a simple step to take, but it’s not… at least not always. For we are good at justifying the behaviors we desire to do and can even convince ourselves that we know better than God.
True repentance means admitting our sins according to God’s measures. God has laid out his expectations clearly in the scriptures and we have no business questioning them or reinterpreting them according to our own desires.
Once we have admitted our sin, the second step of repentance is to ask God for his forgiveness. And here we should note that asking for this is a very bold thing to do. For who are we to ask God to forgive us?
God, however, invites us to ask for this. “Return to me with all your heart,” he says through his prophets. In our first reading this evening we heard this being said through the prophet Joel.
In that reading, Joel goes on to explain that we should do this because “the Lord your God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.” Joel then further explains that God “relents over disaster” and may even “leave a blessing behind him” despite our sin.
About this blessing that God may choose to give, notice that Joel calls it “a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God.” And here Joel is really making us think, because the statement reads as if God is the one receiving the blessing not us. But Joel’s point is that the best blessings we can receive are the ones which move us to give back to God. In other words, it’s not the possessing of grain and drink that are the true blessings of life, but rather the faith and devotion to give some of these back to God as an offering. When people are worshiping God, as symbolized here by the giving of their offerings, then they are truly blessed. God wishes to restore this to his people. And he will work to make such restoration happen – even if he needs to allow some bad things to happen to us, which he sometimes does to catch our attention.
Just as the prophets urge us to turn to God in repentance and explain to us God’s willingness to hear us, so also Jesus conveys these same ideas. He does this as he teaches his disciples to pray: “forgive us our trespasses.”
Jesus teaches us to pray this because he knows that God is gracious and merciful. God will forgive our sins when we come to him in repentance.
God’s grace and mercy are so central to his being that even in a penitential season like Lent, where we spend extra time focusing on our need for forgiveness, the message of this grace and mercy should still predominate. Our liturgy earlier in the service may have had us confess our status as “poor miserable sinners,” but it also explained that our repentance is “born of a faithful heart that dwells confidently on [God’s] Word and draws from it life and hope.”
Lent, we see, is not just about repenting of our sin but also about turning to God with confident hope. And I will remind you that “hope” for a Christian is more than just a mere “hoping that things will go well,” as we often say, but rather a confidence that there are good things ahead, according to God’s promise. The apostle Paul makes this clear in his many uses of the word, describing God as “the God of hope” (Romans 15:13) and speaking to the “hope to which Christ has called you” (Ephesians 1:18). He mentions the “hope laid up in heaven for you” (Colossians 1:5), the “hope of the Gospel” (Col. 1:23), and tells of “our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13).
Our Lenten devotions this year – available to you once again on a table in the narthex – express this confident hope by focusing on Jesus as Savior, Servant and Friend. The devotions for each day are short but interesting. And more than that, they are encouraging and Christ-centered. As you work your way through them you will see that they are broken down into sections looking at Jesus as healer, listener, encourager, protector, comforter and savior. All of these categories reflect the hope we have in Christ and speak to the blessings he gives.
Our midweek services on Wednesdays will emphasize this confident hope as well. As I mentioned earlier, these will center around the seven petitions of the Lord’s Prayer and draw heavily on the explanations of these petitions in Luther’s Catechism.
Tonight, we, in fact, begin the series. So for the rest of the sermon I will briefly address the prayer’s introduction and first petition.
Jesus teaches that we can begin our prayer by calling God “Father.” And here we should note that this is a pretty radical teaching. For “Father” may have been Jesus’ own preferred way of addressing God, but of course he can say this because of his status while we can’t. Jesus is God’s Son in a way that none of the rest of us are.
How amazing, then, that Jesus teaches us to address God in this way! Jesus clearly does this in light of what he will accomplish in his ministry, where he will make our reconciliation with God possible. For at the culmination of his ministry Jesus will atone for our sins by his death on the cross. And this then makes possible our adoption as God’s children – an adoption that is signified and sealed when we are Baptized into his name.
Luther highlights this understanding about addressing God in his explanation to the introduction. There he says: “With these words God tenderly invites us to believe that he is our true Father and that we are his true children, so that with all boldness and confidence we may ask him as dear children ask their dear father.”
Jesus, after teaching us how we can address God in prayer, then goes on to share with us seven requests that we can make of him. These are known as the seven petitions. The first of these is the short prayer: “Hallowed by thy name,” which can also be stated: “May your name by holy.”
In his catechism, Luther asks and answers two questions about this petition. First, he asks: “What does this mean?” And he answers by saying that “God’s name is certainly holy in itself, but we pray in this petition that it may be kept holy among us also.”
In this answer Luther gives us an important clarification. For sometimes we think it’s up to us make God’s name holy. But it’s not. Luther reminds us of this.
The goal of the petition is that God’s name be kept holy, not made holy. And here we note that by urging us to pray for this, Jesus is teaching us to ask for God’s help in keeping the second commandment, which is “You shall not misuse the Lord’s name,” or, as many of us have learned it, “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord Thy God in vain.”
This commandment of God, and the corresponding prayer of Jesus, both come at the beginning of their respective lists (second commandment, first petition). And this reminds us just how important it is that God’s name be kept holy.
Luther then asks the logical follow-up question to this understanding, asking: “How is God’s name kept holy?” And he answers this question by saying: “God’s name is kept holy when the Word of God is taught in its truth and purity, and we, as the children of God, also lead holy lives according to it.”
Here Luther seems to make a jump. For the petition is about God’s name while Luther’s explanation is about God’s word. But of course this is no error. God’s name is known by God’s word; and God’s word teaches us to uphold God’s name. In the Old Testament, both God’s name and God’s word were continually extolled.
Some have suggested that this equation of God’s name with God’s word reflects the fact that Luther placed a higher emphasis on God’s word than the church of his day. As you may recall, Luther insisted that all theology should be based on the word of God alone while others believed that the church and its tradition needed to be an equal or greater authority.
Whether this thinking is reflected in his explanation or not, Luther’s call to correctly teach according to God’s word is a sure and certain way to honor his name. And that’s why Luther continues his explanation by having us pray: “Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven!”
Luther then closes with a warning, saying: “But anyone who teaches or lives contrary to God’s Word profanes the name of God among us.” And this warning then leads to the related prayer: “Protect us from this, heavenly Father!”
When we consider this petition, and particularly on Ash Wednesday, it should remind us that we often fail to use God’s name rightly. We too often use it, instead, with our curses or our exclamations of surprise. And we certainly have great trouble living according to God’s word.
Jesus understands our troubles. And as we noted, he has paid for our sins and assured us of our forgiveness.
But Jesus also teaches us to pray for help in doing better. And he teaches us to repent of our failures too.
Everyone benefits when God’s name is kept holy among us. We therefore pray with Luther: “Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven!”
And we remember, too, that God hears our prayers and will send his help, according to his grace and mercy.
May God then bless us as we live in this hope. In the name of Jesus. Amen.
HYMN (Stand) Our Father, Who from Heaven Above Sts. 1, 2, 9 LSB 766
1 Our Father, who from heav’n above
Bids all of us to live in love
As members of one family
And pray to You in unity,
Teach us no thoughtless words to say
But from our inmost hearts to pray.
2 Your name be hallowed. Help us, Lord,
In purity to keep Your Word,
That to the glory of Your name
We walk before You free from blame.
Let no false teaching us pervert;
All poor deluded souls convert.
9 Amen, that is, so shall it be.
Make strong our faith in You, that we
May doubt not but with trust believe
That what we ask we shall receive.
Thus in Your name and at Your Word
We say, “Amen, O hear us, Lord!”
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.
OFFERING (Be seated)
Offerings support the church’s mission work – both here and through our many partners. Offerings may be placed in the box at the sanctuary entrance or sent to the church through our website or the mail. Fellowship Cards help us welcome new people and track participation. Please fill one out and place it in the offering box following the service.
PRAYERS (Kneel or Sit)
Let us pray for the whole Church of God in Christ Jesus and for all people according to their needs.
Merciful God, in the name of Your Son, Jesus Christ, cleanse and renew our hearts from the stain of sin. Bring us to genuine repentance, pardon all our sins, and renew our faith that we may have a clear conscience. Grant us the aid of Your Holy Spirit to manifest the holiness of life which befits our calling through Holy Baptism. And by faith, let us show forth the good works of Christ who called us from darkness into His marvelous light. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Save and defend Your Church from the enemies of Your Word. Give us faithful pastors and teachers who will gather Your sheep with Your voice, feed them Your blessed Sacrament and lead us into Your everlasting presence. Teach us the love of Your name and the desire for what is good and right, that we would renounce all false religion and love You with our whole heart, mind, body and strength. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Make known your presence to those in distress. Grant healing to the sick, help to the troubled, comfort to the dying, and peace to those who mourn. Bring us all through trouble and trial by Your grace, that we may sing anew Your wondrous love and mercy. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Remember in mercy all who come today to receive the Savior’s body and blood, that this Sacrament may turn our hearts in repentance, strengthen our faith, and embolden us to love and serve our neighbor. Lord, in Your mercy, hear our prayer.
Bless us, heavenly Father, on this holy day of repentance. As we enter the season of Lent, let us hold fast to Your Word. Teach us to die to self and serve You faithfully throughout this mortal life, until at last You bring us with the blessed saints into Your presence forevermore; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
✠ ✠ ✠
SERVICE OF HOLY COMMUNION
THE PREFACE (Stand)
P: The Lord be with you.
C: And also with you.
P: Lift up your hearts.
C: We lift them up to the Lord.
P: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
C: It is right to give Him thanks and praise.
EUCHARISTIC PRAYER
THE WORDS OF OUR LORD
THE LORD’S PRAYER
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.
LAMB OF GOD LSB 198
O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world, have mercy upon us.
O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world, have mercy upon us.
O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world, grant us Thy peace. Amen.
COMMUNION (Be seated)
Those wishing to commune at the foot of the steps should come forward first. Those wishing to commune at the altar rail should come forward after these, front rows first, from both sides of the aisle. After receiving, all should return to their seats. A common dismissal will be given at the end.
COMMUNION HYMN Jesus, Thy Blood and Righteousness LSB 563
1 Jesus, Thy blood and righteousness
My beauty are, my glorious dress;
Midst flaming worlds, in these arrayed,
With joy shall I lift up my head.
2 Bold shall I stand in that great day,
Cleansed and redeemed, no debt to pay;
Fully absolved through these I am
From sin and fear, from guilt and shame.
3 Lord, I believe Thy precious blood,
Which at the mercy seat of God
Pleads for the captives’ liberty,
Was also shed in love for me.
4 Lord, I believe, were sinners more
Than sands upon the ocean shore,
Thou hast for all a ransom paid,
For all a full atonement made.
5 When from the dust of death I rise
To claim my mansion in the skies,
This then shall be my only plea:
Jesus hath lived and died for me.
6 Jesus, be endless praise to Thee,
Whose boundless mercy hath for me,
For me, and all Thy hands have made,
An everlasting ransom paid.
POST COMMUNION PRAYER (Stand)
BENEDICTION
SENDING HYMN Lamb of God LSB 550
1 Your only Son, no sin to hide,
But You have sent Him from Your side
To walk upon this guilty sod,
And to become the Lamb of God. Refrain
Refrain
O Lamb of God, sweet Lamb of God,
I love the holy Lamb of God!
O wash me in His precious blood,
My Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God.
2 Your Gift of love they crucified,
They laughed and scorned Him as He died:
The humble King they named a fraud,
And sacrificed the Lamb of God. Refrain
3 I was so lost, I should have died,
But You have brought me to Your side
To be led by Your staff and rod,
And to be called a lamb of God. Refrain
POSTLUDE Lamb of God Setting: Jonathan Kohrs
THOSE SERVING IN OUR MIDST:
Greeter: Steve Berg
Comm. Assist.: Dan Buuck
Reader: Dan Buuck
Acknowledgments
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 © 2025 Concordia Publishing House.
419 Savior, When in Dust to Thee Text: Robert Grant, 1779–1838, alt. Tune: Joseph Parry, 1841–1903 Text and tune: Public domain
609 Jesus Sinners Doth Receive Text: tr. The Lutheran Hymnal, 1941, alt.; Erdmann Neumeister, 1671–1756 Tune: Neu-verfertigtes Darmstädtisches Gesang-Buch, 1699, Darmstadt Text and tune: Public domain
422 On My Heart Imprint Your Image Text: Thomas Hansen Kingo, 1634–1703; tr. Peer O. Strömme, 1856–1921, alt. Tune: Johann Balthasar König, 1691–1758 Text and tune: Public domain
766 Our Father, Who from Heaven Above Text: Martin Luther, 1483–1546; (sts. 1, 9): tr. The Lutheran Hymnal, 1941, alt.; (st. 2): tr. F. Samuel Janzow, 1913–2001, alt. Tune: attr. Martin Luther, 1483–1546 Text (sts. 1, 9): Public domain Text (st. 2): © 1980 Concordia Publishing House. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License no. 110005326 Tune: Public domain
563 Jesus, Thy Blood and Righteousness Text: Nicolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf, 1700–60; tr. John B. Wesley, 1703–91, alt. Tune: George J. Elvey, 1816–93 Text and tune: Public domain
550 Lamb of God Text and tune: Twila Paris, 1958 Text and tune: © 1985 Straightway Music, admin. EMI. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License no. 110005326
