Everything you need for July 25 online worship.
Preparations for Worship:
- Do your best to eliminate distractions like the phone, TV, etc.
- Worship actively! Whether you are by yourself or with others, try reading the parts of the service aloud (responses, lessons, and prayers).
- This service is for children too. Help them participate. Ask those who have that ability to read a prayer or lesson aloud. Take a moment to describe what’s happening. Ask questions. Encourage little ones to draw what they are hearing while you all listen. Unlike our more typical Sunday worship at church, you can pause at any time for questions and discussion.
- Before you begin, load each of the videos below. (You might first have to get past a distracting ad.)
- Pause for a moment of quiet meditation. Then pray:
“Heavenly Father, I have come to worship you. Draw near to me in your gracious Word, and assure me of your loving kindness. Curb my wandering thoughts, that with undivided attention I may hear your voice and speak your praise. Through Jesus Christ. Amen.”
INVOCATION
O Lord, open my lips. And my mouth shall declare your praise.
Hasten to save me, O God. O Lord, come quickly to help me.
The glory of Christ is revealed: let us worship him.
Grant, O merciful Lord, to your faithful people pardon and peace that they may be cleansed from all their sins and serve you with a quiet mind; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
LESSON – EXODUS 24:3-11
3Moses came and reported to the people all the words of the Lord and all the ordinances. Then all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which the Lord has spoken we will do.” 4Moses wrote down all the words of the Lord. He got up early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain. He set up twelve memorial stones for the twelve tribes of Israel. 5He sent young Israelite men, who offered whole burnt offerings and sacrificed fellowship offerings of cattle to the Lord. 6Moses took half of the blood and put it in bowls, and he splashed half of the blood on the altar. 7He took the Book of the Covenant and read it out loud to the people and they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do. We will obey.”
8Moses took the blood and splashed it on the people. He said, “Look, here is the blood of the covenant, which the Lord made with you by means of all these words.” 9Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up. 10They saw the God of Israel. Under his feet they saw what looked like a pavement of sapphire as clear as the sky. 11The Lord did not lay his hand on the dignitaries of the people of Israel. They gazed at God, and they ate and drank.
GOSPEL – JOHN 6:1-15
After this, Jesus crossed over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias). 2A large crowd followed him because they saw the miraculous signs he was performing on those who were sick. 3Jesus went up on the hillside and sat down there with his disciples. 4The Jewish Passover Festival was near. 5When Jesus looked up and saw a huge crowd coming toward him, he asked Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6But Jesus was saying this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. 7Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to have just a little.” 8One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, 9“There’s a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what is that for so many people?” 10Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, so they sat down. There were about five thousand men. 11Then Jesus took the loaves and, after giving thanks, he distributed pieces to those who were seated. He also did the same with the fish—as much as they wanted. 12When the people were full, he told his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over so that nothing is wasted.” 13So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with pieces from the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. 14When the people saw the miraculous sign Jesus did, they said, “This really is the Prophet who is coming into the world.” 15When Jesus realized that they intended to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.
DEVOTION – EPHESIANS 4:1-7, 11-16
OFFERING
Offerings may be given on-line at tithe.ly/risensavior, mailed to the church, or dropped off at the church.
Our members have joined together in faith and love to do the Lord’s work in this community and around the world. Guests need not feel obligated to participate in this offering which supports our ministry.
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
Great are You, O Lord, and greatly to be praised. You rule earth and sea and sky. We give You thanks for the blessings of creation and life that come from Your abundant goodness.
Give to Your Church boldness to speak of Your awesome deeds and sing always of Your righteousness. Lord, You are able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think.
Be glorified in Your Church and in Christ Jesus! Ground us in love, give us a faith rooted in the promises of Christ, and give us strength to comprehend with all the saints His love that surpasses knowledge.
Lord of might, spare us and future generations from wickedness. Give blessing to our nation and its leaders to rule according to Your good pleasure.
Protect the members of our armed forces, police and other public servants.
Gracious God, as Dr. Martin Luther courageously proclaimed “Here I stand” 500 years ago, so WELS, our national church body, today continues to stand firmly on the full truth of your saving Word. Thank you for blessing our church body with faithfulness to Scripture. As the synod meets in convention to celebrate your blessings and make ministry decisions, give the leaders and delegates wisdom and understanding.
Bless their decisions for the good of your kingdom.
Heavenly Father, through Your Son and His reconciling death, we receive all good gifts, healing and sustenance. We bring before You the sick and those in need.
Give them healing and protection, and encourage them in the midst of this life by the recognition of Your Fatherly providence known in Christ, our Savior.
O Lord, do not allow our hearts to become hardened by indifference or any frustration in this world. Give us understanding and courage to sustain us in this valley of sorrows.
Lead us to repentance and faith, that we may receive forgiveness of sins and confidence according to Christ’s New Testament.
All these things and whatever else You know that we need, grant us, Father, for the sake of Him who died and rose again and taught us to pray…
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.
O Lord, our heavenly Father, almighty and everlasting God, you have brought us safely to this new day. Defend us with your mighty power, and grant that this day we neither fall into sin nor run into any kind of danger; and in all we do, direct us to what is right in your sight, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Let us praise the Lord. Thanks be to God.
THE LORD’S BLESSING
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.