https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p01_fPPfjfY

Christ Is Our Living Cornerstone  FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER   May 7 & May 10, 2023

ZION EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH – LCMS 700 Main St.  P.O. Box 220   Clyman, WI  53016

Pastor Dan 1-(920)-341-2025 – shepherdatzion@gmail.com

Bulletin Announcement email: zionclyman@gmail.com

AS WE GATHER – We continue to focus our attention on Jesus’ resurrection and what it means for the world.  Today we are reminded that Jesus is the stone that was rejected.  Yet God raised Jesus from the dead, making Him the living cornerstone, the foundational stone upon which all the other living stones,  (believers by faith) are being built upon and made one.  As the Holy Spirit builds our foundation of faith and life on the cornerstone of Jesus, we become living stones which share the news of what He has done to be the Way, the Truth and the Life for all people.

Ringing of the Bell and Welcome

 Hymn  “Christ Is Our Cornerstone”                         LSB 912

 Invocation – In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.    Amen

 Opening Sentences – Alleluia! Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!  Christ is our cornerstone; on Him alone we build.  He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life!  On Him we stand firm in our faith which leads to our eternal life!  Our hearts need not be troubled!  He is the living stone on which we stand unshaken and confident! 

 Confession and Absolution – Though Christ is our cornerstone, we often build our lives, hopes, and dreams on other things.  That worldly building  leads to false hope and crumbling lives.  In His mercy our heavenly Father invites us to draw near to His throne in humble repentance and in confidence to ask for forgiveness.

A short time of silence to reflect on those sins heavy on our hearts.

Let us now confess our sin and ask God our heavenly Father to grant us forgiveness, for the sake of His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.  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.  Amen

Almighty God in His mercy has given His Son to die for you and for His sake forgives you all your sins.  As a called and ordained servant of Christ, and by His authority, I therefore forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit.     Amen.

Psalm 146- Praise the Lord.  Praise the Lord, O my soul.  I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.  Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save.  When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing.  Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them–the Lord, who remains faithful forever.  He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry.  The Lord sets prisoners free, the Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.  The LORD reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations.  Praise the LORD.  I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

 

Hymn of Praise –  Gloria in Excelsis LSB 204

 Salutation    The Lord be with you.     And with thy spirit.

Prayer of the day- O God, You make the minds of Your faithful to be of one will. Grant that we may love what You have commanded and desire what You promise, that among the many changes of this world our hearts may be fixed where true joys are found; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.   Amen

 First Reading   Acts 6:1–12; 7:2a, 51–60, 8:1 – (Stephen remains faithful in the midst of death.)   In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.  So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.  Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”  This proposal pleased the whole group.  They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.  They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.  So the word of God spread.  The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.  Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people. Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)–Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia.  These men began to argue with Stephen, but they could not stand up against his wisdom or the Spirit by whom he spoke.  Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God.”  So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin.  To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me!   “You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit!  Was there ever a prophet your fathers did not persecute?  They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One.  And now you have betrayed and murdered him–you who have received the law that was put into effect through angels but have not obeyed it.”  When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him.  But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.  “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”  At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.  While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”  Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”  When he had said this, he fell asleep.  And Saul was there, giving approval to his death.  On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.

 Epistle 1 Peter 2:1–10 – (Built on Jesus, we are a chosen people.) – Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.  Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.  As you come to him, the living Stone–rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him–you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.  For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone, and, “A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.”  They stumble because they disobey the message–which is also what they were destined for.  But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Verse – Alleluia. We know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer has dominion over Him. Alleluia.  Our Lord said- “Let not your hearts be troubled.  Believe in God; believe also in me.”  We believe and our hearts are filled with joy!  We will live with Him forever!  Alleluia!

Holy Gospel  John 14:1–14  (Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.)    The Holy Gospel according to St. John, the fourteenth chapter.       Glory to You, O Lord.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled.  Trust in God; trust also in me.  In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you.  I am going there to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.  You know the way to the place where I am going.”  Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”  Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.  If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well.  From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”  Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.”  Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time?  Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.  How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?  Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me?  The words I say to you are not just my own.  Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.  Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.  I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing.  He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.  And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father.  You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.         This is the Gospel of the Lord.   Praise to You, O Christ.

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.

 Hymn  “You Are the Way….”      LSB 526

Sermon

 Prayers of the Church

 We Gather our Tithes and Offerings

 Service of the Sacrament  

Preface   2 Timothy 4:22 –  The Lord be with you.  And also with you.  Lift up your hearts.  We lift them up to the Lord.  Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.  It is right to give Him thanks and praise.

Proper Preface –   It is truly good, right, and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks to You, holy Lord, almighty Father, everlasting God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, for He is the cornerstone, the sure foundation upon which the newborn, chosen, priestly people of His Church have been built. Therefore with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven we laud and magnify Your glorious name, evermore praising You and singing:

Sanctus                                                                         LSB 208

Prayer of Thanksgiving – Blessed are You, Lord of heaven and earth, for You have had mercy on those whom You created and sent Your only-begotten Son into our flesh to bear our sin and be our Savior. With repentant joy we receive the salvation accomplished for us by the all-availing sacrifice of His body and His blood on the cross.  Gathered in the name and the remembrance of Jesus, we beg You, O Lord, to continually call us out of darkness and into Your marvelous light, so that we may proclaim Your excellencies to all the nations. Grant us faithfully to eat Christ’s body and drink His blood as He bids us do in His own testament. Graciously receive our prayers; deliver and preserve us. To You alone, O Father, be all glory, honor, and worship, with the Son and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.   Amen

The Words of Our Lord – Consecration of the Elements

 Proclamation of Christ – O Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, in giving us Your body and blood to eat and to drink, You lead us to remember and confess Your holy cross and passion, Your blessed death, Your rest in the tomb, Your resurrection from the dead, Your ascension into heaven, and Your coming for the final judgment. So remember us in Your kingdom and teach us to pray:

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.

 Pax Domini – The peace of the Lord be with you always.    Amen.

Agnus Dei – LSB 210

We Celebrate our Lord’s Supper

 Distribution Hymns:  “The Church’s One Foundation”   LSB 644   “Thine Forever, God of Love”   LSB 687      “The Son of God Goes Forth to War”    LSB 661

Post-Communion Canticle –  Nunc Dimittis LSB 211

Post-Communion Thanksgiving – We give thanks to You, almighty God, that You have refreshed us through this salutary gift, and we implore You that of Your mercy You would strengthen us through the same in faith toward You and in fervent love toward one another; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever    Amen.

Benediction – The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord look upon you with favor and X give you peace.      Amen.

Hymn:  “Christ Be My Leader”                       LSB 861

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 *Announcements*

From the Board of Stewardship and Evangelism:   James 1:17 – “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” There are a great many passages in Scripture which echo this theme: everything good we have is from God. He loves to give. He loves to bless. He loves to show us generosity time and again, and He desires that we reflect His love and openhanded kindness.

The Pewpoint – THEME OF THE DAY   The Lord Jesus Christ Is the Way, the Truth and the Life

 The risen Lord Jesus alone is “the way, and the truth, and the life,” and we come “to the Father” only through Him (John 14:6). God is thus “glorified in the Son,” and those who believe in Him will do the works of Christ because He goes to the Father for us (John 14:12–14). Stephen, “a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 6:5) and “doing great wonders and signs among the people” (Acts 6:8), did the works of Christ. When he was falsely accused and put to death, he “gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:55). Fixing his hope there, he commended his spirit to the Lord Jesus and prayed for his murderers. In the same way, all the baptized are called to follow the example of Christ Jesus by faith. Though He was “rejected by men” in the sight of God, He is “chosen and precious” (1 Peter 2:4). He is the chief cornerstone of the Father’s “spiritual house,” and we are built upon Him as “living stones” (1 Peter 2:5).

YES IN CHRIST  —  Saying Yes With Our Treasures – Needed per week to make budget: $3,072                 Sunday Envelopes $1,880    Plate $5    General Memorial: Eli Dornfeld $50   Betty Dornfeld $25

Attendance:  Sunday Service:  46  Communed:    38    Mid-Week Service: 12     Communed:    12

On their special day please wish them a Happy Birthday.

Scott W	5/11
Anna S	5/12
Erica T	5/13
Dawn L	5/15
Lanny B	5/17
Wendy S	5/24
Robert S	5/25
Ralph K	5/27
Jim G Jr.	5/31

 

Happy Anniversary to

 

Daniel & Martha C	5/10
Warren & Caroline J	5/17

Brothers and sisters in Christ to lift up in prayer!

1)  Elizabeth, granddaughter of Beverly Schwantes who continues to be in the ICU.  She is improving but will need God’s presence for a little while.

2) Penny Huebner who will be having surgery on Monday May 8th.

3) We rejoice that Gleason came home on Friday April 28th, and was in church on the 30th.  He is doing well.

We rejoice with Rev. Torkelson as he was installed on May 30th, as Pastor at Mt. Olive, Madison.  May God bless him as he begins his new ministry with a new flock of God’s people.

 The Lutheran Witness is here for May 2023 – pick up a copy in the back or narthex.