This Slide Design Indicates Children’s Time

423 Jesus, Refuge of the Weary

1 Jesus, refuge of the weary, Blest Redeemer, whom we love,Fountain in life’s desert dreary, Savior from the world above:Often have Your eyes, offended, Gazed upon the sinner’s fall;Yet upon the cross extended, You have borne the pain of all.

423 Jesus, Refuge of the Weary

2 Do we pass that cross unheeding,

Breathing no repentant vow,Though we see You wounded, bleeding, See Your thorn-encircled brow?Yet Your sinless death has brought us Life eternal, peace, and rest;Only what Your grace has taught us Calms the sinner’s deep distress.

423 Jesus, Refuge of the Weary

3 Jesus, may our hearts be burning With more fervent love for You;May our eyes be ever turning To behold Your cross anewTill in glory, parted never From the blessèd Savior’s side,Graven in our hearts forever, Dwell the cross, the Crucified.

Public domain

L Show us Your steadfast love, O Lord,C and grant us Your salvation.L Let Your priests be clothed with

righteousness;C and let Your saints shout for joy.L Lord, keep this nation under Your care,C and guide us in the way of justice

and truth.L Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,C for You judge the peoples with

equity and guide the nations upon the earth.

L Let the peoples praise You, O God;C let all the peoples praise You!L For the needy shall not always be

forgotten,C and the hope of the poor shall not

perish forever.L Create in me a clean heart, O God,C and renew a right spirit within me.L Hear my prayer, O Lord;C let my cry come to You.

Collect for the Word

L Blessed Lord, You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning. Grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and take them to heart that, by the patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives on reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

C Amen.

Readings From Holy Scripture

Reading

L A reading from 2 Samuel, the sixth chapter.

14And David danced before the LORD with all his might. And David was wearing a linen ephod. 15So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the horn.16As the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the

Reading

LORD, and she despised him in her heart. 17And they brought in the ark of the LORD and set it in its place, inside the tent that David had pitched for it. And David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD. 18And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts 19and distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, a cake of

Reading

bread, a portion of meat, and a cake of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed, each to his house.20And David returned to bless his household. But Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David and said, “How the king of Israel honored himself today, uncovering himself today before the eyes of his servants’ female servants, as one of the vulgar fellows shamelessly uncovers himself!” 21And David said to Michal, “It was before the LORD, who

Reading

chose me above your father and above all his house, to appoint me as prince over Israel, the people of the LORD—and I will make merry before the LORD. 22I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in your eyes. But by the female servants of whom you have spoken, by them I shall be held in honor.” 23And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her death.L This is the Word of the Lord.C Thanks be to God.

Stand

Holy Gospel

P The Holy Gospel according to Matthew, the sixteenth chapter.

C Glory to You, O Lord.21From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you,

Holy Gospel

Lord! This shall never happen to you.” 23But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”24Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever would save his life will

Holy Gospel

lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? Or what shall a man give in return for his life? 27For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. P This is the Gospel of the Lord.C Praise to You, O Christ.

Creed

First ArticleC I believe in God, the Father Almighty,

maker of heaven and earth.

Second Article 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.

Creed

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.

Creed

Third Article 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 T everlasting. Amen.

Lord's PrayerC 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.

The 3rd CommandmentRemember the Sabbath Day by keeping it

holy.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?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.

Sit

756 Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me1 Why should cross and trial

grieve me? Christ is near With His cheer;Never will He leave me.Who can rob me of the heaven That God’s Son For me wonWhen His life was given?

756 Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me

2 When life’s troubles rise to meet me,

Though their weight May be great,They will not defeat me.God, my loving Savior, sends them; He who knows All my woesKnows how best to end them.

756 Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me

3 God gives me my days of gladness,

And I will Trust Him stillWhen He sends me sadness.God is good; His love attends me Day by day, Come what may,Guides me and defends me.

756 Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me

4 From God’s joy can nothing sever,

For I am His dear lamb,He, my Shepherd ever.I am His because He gave me His own blood For my good,By His death to save me.

756 Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me

5 Now in Christ, death cannot slay me,

Though it might, Day and night,Trouble and dismay me.Christ has made my death a portal From the strife Of this lifeTo His joy immortal!© 2004 Stephen P. Starke. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License .NET, no. 100013758.Public domain

Sermon

The Crosses of Marriage

Vocation is where we share God’s blessings with our neighbor…

It is also where we bear our crosses.

What does it mean to bear a cross?

Self-Denial

Romans 12:1

Vocation – to love and serve our neighbor in the place God has put us.

Requires us to deny our selves and put others first.

Every act of love and service is thus a living sacrifice. (Ephesians 5:2)

In Marriage – Christians often think their marriage should be perfect…or at least always joyful.

Christ suffered greatly bearing His cross

Every vocation has its cross to bear – conflicts and problems.

A cross is something we bear A problem is something to solve

These evenings are not to solve “problems” but to point out the illusions we often carry

DIFFERENCESThough united into 1 flesh, husband and wife still have

different personalities, feelings, desires and beliefs.2 distinct wills

Disagreements turn into conflicts/fights.

Wife bitter about submission - resentfulHusband lords it over his wife – overbearing

God’s design requires both the wife to submit and the husband to give himself up

Unequally Yoked1 believer – 1 non-believer

1 Corinthians 7:12-16 & 2 Corinthians 6:14-15Through their love & service may save their partner

Satanic MarriagesGod is still active within the marriage

The non-believer may actually do harm to the believer just as Satan attempts to harm the church. The believing spouse

is allowed to leave in these extreme circumstances.

Unhappy Marriages

Familiarity – greater intimacy/greater contemptBegin to think/sense they could do better, be happier, saying “God is hiding a better life from you, you could

do better if you act/choose for yourself”

These thoughts lead to adultery – physical or mental –

Flirting, fantasies, picturesLeads to a destruction of the union

King David & MichalMichal loved David – risked her life, defied her

father/king (Saul) for David(1 Samuel 19:11-17)

David loved Michal – fought bravely at war to pay the steep bloody price Saul asked for her

(1 Samuel 18:20-27)

2 Samuel 6:16 – Michal’s embarrassment at David’s zeal lead to their permanent estrangement (2 Sam.

6:23)

If it weren’t for sin, marriage would be a blissful surrender of self to the other

Because of sin ‘each seeks to satisfy their desire with the other’

When unhappiness settles in, people become impatient and fail to forgive one another.

Thus, patience and forgiveness are the most effective defense against thoughts of divorce.

THE REMEDY:When you look to your spouse you

recall:“This is the one whom God has granted

to me and put into my arms.”

Husbands and wives can realize how precious their relationship,

despite all trials, when they understand that

in their vocations, they are God’s gifts to each other.

Offering

Stand

Prayer

P Gracious Lord, Your love endures forever. You demonstrated that love by sending Your Son, Jesus Christ, into the world for us men and our salvation. He showed forth that love by His innocent suffering and death. You confirmed His loving sacrifice by His resurrection from the dead. You have revealed Your love for us in Your Holy Word. We thank You for the gift of faith and of hearts that love You through the work of the Holy Spirit. Help us to love one another with the love You

Prayer

have given to us in anticipation of that great Day of the Lord. Lord, in Your mercy,

C hear our prayer.P Grant us a proper understanding of good

works, O Lord, that they may indeed prove that faith is living. Provide us many opportunities to serve You by serving our neighbors in need. Lord, in Your mercy,

C hear our prayer.P Protect us from false teachings and false

teachers that none may be deprived of

Prayer

eternal life in Your Son. Therefore, bless all pastors, teachers, professional church workers and leaders in Your Church, that they may be grounded in Your Word, pure of character, trustworthy, resolute in purpose, and united in the mind of Christ. Lord, in Your mercy,

C hear our prayer.P Inspire Your people to serve with eager

hearts and faithful hands, O Lord—to gladly support the spread of the Gospel in sharing it themselves and providing for

Prayer

others who do so as well. Lord, in Your mercy,C hear our prayer.P O Lord, bless and protect our President,

the Congress and Judiciary of the United States, the Governor of Illinois as well as all state and local legislatures, judges, and law enforcement and all who have authority over us. Grant that they may protect the weak, free the innocent, and detain the guilty, that the rule of law and justice may be preserved in our land. Lord, in Your mercy,

Prayer

C hear our prayer.P Bless, O Lord, all godly vocations. Break

and hinder the work of those whose livelihood is founded in evil and contrary to Your Ten Commandments. We thank You for the abundant harvest of field and farmyard, office and factory, goods and services. Lord, in Your mercy,

C hear our prayer.P Gracious God, grant Your healing to those

who are sick or facing surgery [especially Leslie Wagenecht, Steve Sullivan, Bob Bierman]. Give

Prayer

their physicians caring wisdom and skill to do their work effectively to Your glory and for the good of their patients. Comfort those who mourn the death of loved ones. Calm their troubled hearts and give them peace to face the days ahead in the confidence that You will never forsake them. Lord, in Your mercy,

C hear our prayer.P Prepare us for Your return, O Lord,

through the blessings of Your Holy Supper. Through the eating and drinking

Prayer

of Your most precious body and blood, nourish our troubled hearts that we may watch and await Your return with holy patience. Lord, in Your mercy,

C hear our prayer.P 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 now lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

C Amen.

Collect of the Day

L Most gracious God, we give thanks for the joy and blessings that You grant to husbands and wives. Assist them always by Your grace that with true fidelity and steadfast love they may honor and keep their marriage vows, grow in love toward You and for each other, and come at last to the eternal joys that You have promised; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

C Amen.

Evening PrayerC I thank You, my heavenly Father,

through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day; and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.

The Blessings

Blessing

L Let us bless the Lord.C Thanks be to God.

P The almighty and merciful Lord, the Father, the T Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve you.

C Amen.