Bethlehem Lutheran Church

Third Sunday of Easter April 15, 2018

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *All who are able, please stand.

Welcome and Announcements

*Confession and Forgiveness

Leader: In the name of the Father, and of the ☩ Son, and of the

Holy Spirit.

All: Amen. Leader: Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires

known, and from whom no secrets are hid: cleanse the thoughts

of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may

perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name, through

Jesus Christ our Lord.

All: Amen.

Leader: Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one

another. Most merciful God,

All: we confess that we are captive to sin and cannot free

ourselves. We have sinned against you in thought, word, and

deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone.

We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not

loved our neighbors as ourselves. For the sake of your Son,

Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and

lead us, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your

ways, to the glory of your holy name.

Amen.

Leader: In the mercy of almighty God, Jesus Christ was given to

die for us, and for his sake God forgives us all our sins. As a

called and ordained minister of the church of Christ, and by his

authority, I therefore declare to you the entire forgiveness of all

your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the ☩ Son, and of the

Holy Spirit.

All: Amen

*Opening Hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” ELW 733

*Apostolic Greeting pg 138

Leader: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God,

and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

All: And also with you.

*Kyrie pg 138

Leader: In peace, let us pray to the Lord.

All: Lord, have mercy. Leader: For the peace from above, and for our salvation, let us

pray to the Lord.

All: Lord, have mercy. Leader: For the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of

the church of God, and for the unity of all, let us pray to the Lord.

All: Lord, have mercy. Leader: For this holy house, and for all who offer here their

worship and praise, let us pray to the Lord.

All: Lord, have mercy. Leader: Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.

All: Amen.

*Hymn of Praise pg 139

Leader: Glory to God in the highest, and peace to God’s people

on earth.

All: Lord God, heavenly King,

almighty God and Father,

we worship you,

we give you thanks,

we praise you for your glory.

Lord Jesus Christ,

only Son of the Father,

Lord God, Lamb of God,

you take away the sin of the world:

have mercy on us;

you are seated at the right hand of the Father:

receive our prayer.

For you alone are the Holy One,

you alone are the Lord,

you alone are the Most High,

Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit,

in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

*Prayer of the Day

Leader: Let us pray.

Holy and righteous God, you are the author of life, and you adopt

us to be your children. Fill us with your words of life, that we

may live as witnesses to the resurrection of your Son, Jesus

Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and

the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

All: Amen.

First Reading: Acts 3:12-19 NT Page 105

Psalm 4 OT Page 453

Leader: 1

Answer me when I call, O God of my right!

You gave me room when I was in distress.

Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer.

All: 2How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame?

How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies?

Leader: 3But know that the LORD has set apart the faithful for

himself;

the LORD hears when I call to him.

All: 4When you are disturbed, do not sin;

ponder it on your beds, and be silent.

Leader: 5Offer right sacrifices,

and put your trust in the LORD.

All: 6There are many who say, “O that we might see some

good!

Let the light of your face shine on us, O LORD!”

Leader: 7You have put gladness in my heart more than when

their grain and wine abound.

All: 8I will both lie down and sleep in peace;

for you alone, O LORD, make me lie down in safety.

Second Reading: 1 John 3:1-7 NT Page 212

Children’s Sermon

*Gospel Acclamation “Into My Heart”

Into my heart, into my heart,

Come into my heart, Lord Jesus.

Come in today, come in to stay

Come into my heart, Lord Jesus.

Leader: The Gospel according to Luke, the 24th

Chapter

All: Glory to you, O Lord

*Gospel: Luke 24:36b-48 NT Page 78

Leader: The gospel of the Lord.

All: Praise to you, O Christ.

Sermon Pastor Mark

Hymn of the Day “Children of the Heavenly Father” ELW 781

*Apostles’ Creed pg 105

*Peace

Leader: The peace of Christ be with you all.

All: And also with you.

Offering “Jesus the Very Thought of You” ELW 754

*Offertory Prayer

Leader: Let us pray. Merciful Father,

All: We offer with joy and thanksgiving what you have first

given us – our selves, our time, and our possessions, signs of

your gracious love. Receive them for the sake of him who

offered himself for us, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

*Prayers of the People

Each petition ends: “Lord in your mercy”

Response: “Hear our prayer”

*Lord’s Prayer

*Benediction

*Sending Hymn “All Creatures of Our God and King”

[v. 1-4, 7] LBW 527

1. All creatures of our God and King,

Lift up your voice with us and sing:

Alleluia! Alleluia!

O burning sun with golden beam

And silver moon with softer gleam:

Refrain:

Oh, praise him! Oh, praise him!

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

2. O rushing wind and breezes soft,

O clouds that ride the winds aloft:

Oh, praise him! Alleluia!

O rising morn, in praise rejoice,

O lights of evening, find a voice. [Refrain]

3. O flowing waters, pure and clear,

Make music for your Lord to hear.

Oh, praise him! Alleluia!

O fire so masterful and bright,

Providing us with warmth and light. [Refrain]

4. Dear mother earth, who day by day

Unfolds rich blessings on our way,

Oh, praise him! Alleluia!

The fruits and flow'rs that verdant grow,

Let them his praise abundant show. [Refrain]

7. Let all things their Creator bless

And worship God in humbleness.

Oh, praise him! Alleluia!

Oh, praise the Father, praise the Son,

And praise the Spirit, Three in One, [Refrain]

*Dismissal

Leader: Go in peace. Serve the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

April 8: 7:00am Attendance: 71 Offering: $1,876.00

Greeters: Duane & Kay Kracht and Sherry Toft

Reader: Kay Kracht Organist: Sue Brugman

Power Point Operator: .

-Ethan Batschelet, Missionary--Siloam

Girls’ School in India--Virginia

Christensen--Roger Struve--Doug

Seavert (son of Donnabelle Seavert)--Heath Huberg (Heath is son

of Gary Huberg)--Gabe Toft (son of Gary Toft)--Dave Yungbluth

(from Rossie)--Emma Larson--Ann Myers--Tom Myers--Garry

Kramer (uncle and Godfather of Carma Betz)--Jack Phillips

-Mary Ann Munson (Roger Kruse’s sister)--Joyce Sabel

(daughter of Roger & Betty Kruse) (Please call the church office

to add someone to the prayer list. Requests stay on the list for

one month unless you instruct us to do otherwise. .

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OPPORTUNITIES THIS WEEK AT BETHLEHEM

Today: 9:30 Worship

10:15 Sunday School

10:30 Fellowship

11:00 Choir practice

Monday: 6:30 Bible Study

Tuesday: 6:00 RevWell exercise class

Wednesday: 9:30 Bible Study

9:30 Esther Bible Study

3:30 King’s Kamp

4:00 Confirmation

7:00 Youth Group

Thursday: 2:00 Dorcas Bible Study

Friday: Deadline for articles for Cross Currents

Sunday: 9:30 Worship/Children lead worship

10:15 Sunday School

10:30 Fellowship

11:00 Choir practice

11:00 Quilting

6:00 Confirmation Banquet with

Council Meeting to follow

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All BLCW are asked to provide 2 dozen cookies for the meeting

at River View Terrace on Thursday, April 26, 2:30p.m., for the

residents. You may bring your cookies next Sunday and leave

in the kitchen and officers will make sure they get to River View

Terrace. Esther Bible Study is in charge of the program.

Kings Kamp!

We meet each Wednesday from 3:30- 5:00.

Children ages 4 years to 5th grade are welcome.

This week in the Good Shepherd Centers Pre-1

st Good Shepherd & Wolf

2nd

- 3rd

Ascension/Pentecost

4th

- 5th

God’s Gift of the Holy Spirit

Bridal Shower for Kelsey McCarty and Jordan Gustafson.

Date: Saturday April 21st Where: St. Louis Catholic Church,

Royal, Ia. Time: 9:30am-11:00am Couple is registered at Target

and Kohl’s. All are invited

Open House/Kindergarten round-up will be held on April 30th

from 6:00pm-7:00pm at the Royal Building. Kindergarten is for

any child who will be 5 by September 15th

. Preschool is for any

child who will be 4 by September 15th

.

Find Your Hat for Mothers’ Day!

Sunday, May 13th

is Mothers’ Day,

and we will have our second annual

ladies hat-wearing at worship that day.

Remember when women and girls

went to church with matching hats,

gloves, and purses? Well, all you need

is the hat, wherever you can find it – in

your closet, in your mother’s attic,

whatever. We’ll look forward to

seeing yours, and maybe take a picture

of it for the bulletin board!

COMMUNICATIONS: Church Office: 933-2229

Pastor Mark Wilms: E-mail: pmamlw@royaltelco.net

Pastor’s home phone: 712-933-5545

Pastor’s cell phone: 507-251-8993

Lynn Wilms cell phone: 507-251-9242

Secretary Cindy Buren: E-mail: blc@royaltelco.net

Giving Moment When we pay our taxes, we aren't giving. It is a required

transaction. We give what the government determines; in return

it promises to protect us and promote a productive and healthy

nation. When God gives, He gives unconditionally. Baptism is a

perfect example. We do not receive His blessings by performing

good deeds. Rather, our life is one of thanks for the gifts of His

grace.

On Sunday, April

22nd

, at 9:30 worship, the children of

Bethlehem and Kings’ Kamp will present

“Dr. Seuss Shares God’s Love for His

Children” featuring songs and rhymes that

will bring the message of Jesus Christ in a

wonderful way, as only a Dr. Seuss theme

can. Don’t miss it!

P.S. Please, oh please, wear my colors of red

and white on Sunday, April 22nd

.

Great Is Thy Faithfulness (ELW 733)

1. Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father;

there is no shadow of turning with thee;

thou changest not, thy compassions they fail not;

as thou hast been, thou forever wilt be.

Refrain

Great is thy faithfulness! Great is thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see;

all I have needed thy hand hath provided;

great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

2. Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,

sun, moon, and stars in their courses above

join with all nature in manifold witness

to thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love. Refrain

3. Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,

thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;

strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,

blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside! Refrain

Text & Music © 1923 Hope Publishing Co. All rights reserved.

Reprinted under OneLicense.net #A-713827

Children of the Heavenly Father (ELW 781)

1. Children of the heav'nly Father

safely in his bosom gather;

nestling bird nor star in heaven

such a refuge e'er was given.

2. God his own doth tend and nourish,

in his holy courts they flourish.

From all evil things he spares them,

in his mighty arms he bears them.

3. Neither life nor death shall ever

from the Lord his children sever;

unto them his grace he showeth,

and their sorrows all he knoweth.

4. Though he giveth or he taketh,

God his children ne'er forsaketh;

his the loving purpose solely

to preserve them pure and holy.

Text: Augsburg Fortress © 1925. All rights reserved. Reprinted

under OneLicense.net#A-713827

Jesus, the Very Thought of You (ELW 754)

Jesus, the Very Thought of You

1. Jesus, the very thought of you

fills us with sweet delight;

but sweeter far your face to view

and rest within your light.

2. No voice can sing, no heart can frame,

nor can the mind recall

a sweeter sound than your blest name,

O Savior of us all!

3. O Hope of ev'ry contrite soul,

O joy of all the meek,

how kind you are to those who fall!

How good to those who seek!

4. O Jesus, be our joy today;

help us to prize your love;

grant us at last to hear you say:

"Come, share my home above."

Public Domain

Acts 3:12-19 12

When Peter saw it, he addressed the people, “You Israelites,

why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though

by our own power or piety we had made him walk? 13

The God of

Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our

ancestors has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over

and rejected in the presence of Pilate, though he had decided to

release him. 14

But you rejected the Holy and Righteous One and

asked to have a murderer given to you, 15

and you killed the

Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are

witnesses. 16

And by faith in his name, his name itself has made

this man strong, whom you see and know; and the faith that is

through Jesus has given him this perfect health in the presence of

all of you. 17

“And now, friends, I know that you acted in

ignorance, as did also your rulers. 18

In this way God fulfilled

what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah

would suffer. 19

Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your

sins may be wiped out,

1 John 3:1-7

3See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called

children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world

does not know us is that it did not know him. 2Beloved, we are

God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed.

What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like

him, for we will see him as he is. 3And all who have this hope in

him purify themselves, just as he is pure. 4Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is

lawlessness. 5You know that he was revealed to take away sins,

and in him there is no sin. 6No one who abides in him sins; no

one who sins has either seen him or known him. 7Little children,

let no one deceive you. Everyone who does what is right is

righteous, just as he is righteous.

Luke 24:36b-48

Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with

you.” 37

They were startled and terrified, and thought that they

were seeing a ghost. 38

He said to them, “Why are you frightened,

and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39

Look at my hands and

my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost

does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” 40

And

when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41

While in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering,

he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42

They gave

him a piece of broiled fish, 43

and he took it and ate in their

presence. 44

Then he said to them, “These are my words that I

spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written

about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must

be fulfilled.” 45

Then he opened their minds to understand the

scriptures, 46

and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the

Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, 47

and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed

in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48

You are

witnesses of these things.