Worship Notes for Pentecost 18, 2014

Friday after Pentecost 17

October 10, 2014

The Lord be with you

This coming Sunday is the Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost. We will celebrate the Lord’s Supper. For our liturgy we will use the fourth setting of the Divine Service (page 203). Our opening hymn will be “Oh, for a Thousand Tongues to Sing,” LSB 528. The sermon hymn will be “If Your Beloved Son, O God,” LSB 568. The closing hymn will be “O Christ, Our Hope, Our Hearts’ Desire,” LSB 553. The distribution hymns will be “Thine the Amen, Thine the Praise,” LSB 680, “Christ, the Word of God Incarnate,” LSB 540, and “O Jesus, Blessed Lord, to Thee,” LSB 632. The text for the sermon is Isaiah 25:6. The sermon is titled “Come To God’s Mountain.”

Below is a video of “Thine the Amen, Thine the Praise,” one of our distribution hymns. There is no singing, but the words are included.

Don’t forget, tomorrow, Saturday the 11^th, is a word day at Lamb of God. We are focusing our efforts outside. We begin at 9:00 am.

Our Sunday morning Bible hour begins at 9:00 am. We looking at the biblical themes of Witness, Mercy and Life Together. The study of God’s word is a key way to keep the Third Commandment which Luther explains as meaning, “We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.” Bible study is a great opportunity to “gladly hear and learn” God’s word.  

What follows is a summary of Sunday’s lessons provided by the LC-MS and then the actual lessons.

Clothed in the Righteousness of Christ, We Partake of His Wedding Feast

By His cross and resurrection, the Lord has swallowed up death forever, and by His Gospel He “will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth” (Is. 25:8). Therefore, “let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation” (Is. 25:9). On the mountain of the Lord of hosts — in His Church on earth, as in the kingdom of heaven — He has made “for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine” (Is. 25:6). It is the royal “wedding feast” of the Son of God, “and everything is ready” (Matt. 22:1, 4). Thus, His servants are sent into the highways and byways to invite and gather as many as they find, “both good and bad,” to fill the wedding hall with guests (Matt. 22:8–10). In Holy Baptism, He clothes them all in the “wedding garment” of His own perfect righteousness (Matt. 22:11). Therefore, “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God,” and “rejoice in the Lord always” (Phil. 4:4–6).

Isaiah 25:6–9

⁶         On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples

                   a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine,

                   of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.

⁷         And he will swallow up on this mountain

                   the covering that is cast over all peoples,

                   the veil that is spread over all nations.

⁸                  He will swallow up death forever;

          and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces,

                   and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,

                   for the Lord has spoken.

⁹         It will be said on that day,

                   “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us.

                   This is the Lord; we have waited for him;

                   let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”

Philippians 4:4–13

⁴         Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. ⁵Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; ⁶do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

⁸         Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. ⁹What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

¹⁰        I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. ¹¹Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. ¹²I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. ¹³I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Matthew 22:1–14

^22:1      And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying, ²“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, ³and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. ⁴Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’ ⁵But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, ⁶while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them. ⁷The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. ⁸Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. ⁹Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ ¹⁰And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.

¹¹        “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. ¹²And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. ¹³Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ¹⁴For many are called, but few are chosen.”

A Couple of Quick Notes:

• The board of Evangelism meets Sunday following the worship service.
• The Women’s Bible Fellowship meets Monday, 10:00 am.
• Monday is Columbus Day. Your bank will probably be closed.

Well, I pray we will see you Sunday morning.

Blessings in Christ,

Pastor John Rickert