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Third Sunday in Lent

MARCH 4, 2018

Learn from the Lamb: Sin Must Be Condemned

elcome and thank you for joining us for worship today! In our service we gather before our

almighty and saving God to offer him our worship and praise. We also assemble to hear God’s

holy and powerful word and celebrate his life-giving sacraments. Through these means, God

strengthens our faith and walks us ever closer to our eternal home with him.

The Lord’s Supper (Holy Communion)

The Bible tells us that those who take Communion together are to:

Recognize that Christ’s true body and blood are present in the Sacrament (1 Cor. 11:29),

Examine themselves as Scripture instructs (1 Cor. 11:28), and

Be one in faith and belief with the congregation with which they commune (1 Cor. 10:17).

For these reasons, it is our practice that only those who are members of our congregation or a

congregation of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) join us for Holy Communion. If

you are interested in learning more about becoming a member of our body of believers or want to

find out more about our Communion practice please speak to Pastor Schroeder after the service.

PRAYER BEFORE WORSHIP

God the Father, forgive us for not always treating

you and your house the way that we should. May

we come to this church ready to worship and

praise you. May we come to meditate and pray,

and may we come to respect and honor you and

this place. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Flowers adorning our altar this morning are given

to the glory of God by David Stepanovich

praising Jesus, the king of kings and by Jim

Beehler in celebration of Tim’s birthday.

Minister: Pastor Daniel Schroeder

Pianist: Bob Fromuth

The following were reprinted under OneLicense.net #A-706579: Psalm 19, Richard Proulx ©1986 GIA Publications, Inc., Chicago, IL.

Used by permission.

Cover Artwork by Ian M. Welch. Copyright 2015 Ian M. Welch. All Rights Reserved. paramentics.com

The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version® (EHV®) copyright © 2017 The Wartburg Project. All rights reserved.

www.wartburgproject.org

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3461 Merle Ave

Modesto, CA 95355

(209) 551-0563

www.stpetermodesto.org

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PREPARING FOR WORSHIP Having been reminded during Epiphany of who Christ is and why we follow him, we are now ready

to learn from the Lamb the difficult lessons Lent brings. Today we see that God's love and

forgiveness does not mitigate his condemnation of sin. In the 10 Commandments we see his standards

of perfection. In Jesus' cleansing of the temple, we se his attitude toward those who defy those

commands. Thankfullly, God found a way for his love and his law to be reconciled: He condemned

sin by condemning his Son.

OPENING HYMN God Himself Is Present

Christian Worship #224

CALL TO WORSHIP

Minister: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Congregation: Amen.

CONFESSION OF SINS

M: Dear friends, let us approach God with a true heart and confess our sins, asking him in the name

of our Lord Jesus Christ to forgive us.

C: Lord of life, I confess that I am by nature dead in sin.

For faithless worrying and selfish pride,

For sins of habit and sins of choice,

For the evil I have done and the good I have failed to do,

You should cast me away from your presence forever.

O Lord, I am sorry for my sins. Forgive me, for Jesus’ sake.

LORD, HAVE MERCY (KYRIE)

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ABSOLUTION

M: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. In his great mercy, God made us alive in

Christ even when we were dead in our sins. Hear the word of Christ through his called servant:

I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son (+) and of the Holy Spirit.

C: Amen.

PRAYER OF THE DAY

M: The Lord be with you.

C: And also with you.

M: Let us pray.

Almighty God, look with favor on your humble servants and stretch out the right hand of your

power to defend us against all our enemies; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives

and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

C: Amen.

THE WORD OF GOD

FIRST LESSON Exodus 20:1-17

The Ten Commandments leave no room for sin

Then God spoke all these words:

2I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from the land of Egypt, where you

were slaves.

3You shall have no other gods beside me.

4You shall not make any carved image for

yourself or a likeness of anything in heaven above, or on the earth below, or in the

waters under the earth. 5Do not bow down to them or be subservient to them, for I the

LORD your God am a jealous God. I follow up on the guilt of the fathers with their

children, their grandchildren, and their great-grandchildren, if they also hate me. 6But

I show mercy to thousands who love me and keep my commandments.

7You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not permit

anyone who misuses his name to escape unpunished.

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8Remember the Sabbath day by setting it apart as holy.

9Six days you are to serve and

do all your regular work, 10

but the seventh day shall be a sabbath rest to the LORD

your God. Do not do any regular work, neither you, nor your sons or daughters, nor

your male or female servants, nor your cattle, nor the alien who is residing inside

your gates, 11

for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and

everything that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. In this way the LORD

blessed the seventh day and made it holy.

12Honor your father and your mother so that you may spend many days on the land

that the LORD your God is giving to you.

13You shall not commit murder.

14You shall not commit adultery.

15You shall not steal.

16You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

17You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s

wife, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey, or anything else that

belongs to your neighbor. (EHV)

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PSALM OF THE DAY Psalm 19

The law of God is perfect, reviving the soul and giving joy to the heart

We will sing the psalm responsively by the half verse. The organ side of the congregation sings the

first half of the verses. The piano side of the congregation sings the second half of the verses. All

join in singing the refrains.

The heavens declare the glory of God;

the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Their voice goes out into all the earth.

their words to the ends of the world.

Refrain

The law of the LORD is perfect,

giving joy to the heart.

The commands of the LORD are radiant,

giving light to the eyes.

They are more precious than gold;

they are sweeter than honey.

By them is your servant taught;

in keeping them there is great reward.

Refrain

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart

be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Redeemer.

Refrain

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SECOND LESSON Romans 8:1-10

God condemned sin in sinful man by making his Son a sin offering

So then, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2For in

Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3Indeed, what the law was unable to do, because it was weakened by the flesh, God

did, when he sent his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to deal with sin. God

condemned sin in his flesh, 4so that the righteous decree of the law would be fully

satisfied in us who are not walking according to the flesh, but according to the spirit.

5To be sure, those who are in harmony with the sinful flesh think about things the

way the sinful flesh does, and those in harmony with the spirit think about things the

way the spirit does. 6Now, the way the sinful flesh thinks results in death, but the way

the spirit thinks results in life and peace. 7For the mind-set of the sinful flesh is

hostile to God, since it does not submit to God’s law, and in fact, it cannot. 8Those

who are in the sinful flesh cannot please God.

9But you are not in the sinful flesh but in the spirit, if indeed God’s Spirit lives in

you. And if someone does not have the Spirit of Christ, that person does not belong

to Christ. 10

But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, but your spirit is

alive because of righteousness. (EHV)

VERSE OF THE DAY John 3:14, 15

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert,

so the Son of Man must be lifted up,

that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

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GOSPEL LESSON John 2:13-22

Jesus drives sin out of one temple, promises the condemnation of another

The Jewish Passover was near, so Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

14In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and money

changers sitting at tables. 15

He made a whip of cords and drove everyone out of the

temple courts, along with the sheep and oxen. He scattered the coins of the money

changers and overturned their tables. 16

To those selling doves he said, “Get these

things out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a place of business!”

17His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume

me.”

18So the Jews responded, “What sign are you going to show us to prove you can do

these things?”

19Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up

again.”

20The Jews said, “It took forty-six years to build this temple! And you are going to

raise it in three days?” 21

But Jesus was speaking about the temple of his body. 22

When Jesus was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said

this. Then they believed the Scripture and what Jesus had said. (EHV)

M: This is the gospel of the Lord. C: Praise be to you, O Christ.

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NICENE CREED

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty,

maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God,

begotten, not made, of one being with the Father.

Through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven,

was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and became fully human.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate.

He suffered death and was buried.

On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures.

He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,

and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,

who proceeds from the Father and the Son,

who in unity with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified,

who has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church.

We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.

We look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Jesus said, “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in

heaven.” (Matthew 10:32) When we speak the creed (usually the Apostle’s or Nicene Creeds), we are joining

together to publically confess our faith in Christ. This confession unites us with Christians around the world

and those saints who have gone before us.

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HYMN OF THE DAY You Strode Within the Temple, Lord

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SERMON John 2:13-22

“Jesus Was About His Father’s Business”

1. Purifying his house

2. Pronouncing a warning to his opponents

3. Presenting hope to his church

CREATE IN ME

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OFFERING

The members of St. Peter Congregation have joined together to do the Lord’s work in this community

and around the world. Guests at St. Peter are welcome to participate in the offering but need not feel

obligated to do so.

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH M: Gracious God, you are the Lord who has saved us from bondage to sin and death. May our lives

be a constant response to your generous love and compassion.

C: Lord, you are the one true God. May we worship you alone, putting aside false gods of our

own design.

M: God, your name is holy. May we never use it thoughtlessly, spitefully, or frivolously. Rather,

may your name be hallowed on our lips, and within our hearts.

C: Lord of time, you have paced out the rhythm of our days and weeks. Teach us to govern our

time wisely that we may continually read, learn, and inwardly digest your holy Word.

M: Lord of marriage and family, in a lust-filled world, may those who are married thoroughly love

and honor their spouses; may those unmarried remain chaste; may all be protected from impure

thoughts, and may you strengthen those who struggle with sexual temptation.

C: God, owner of all that is, help us honor the property of others as your gift to them; guard us

from coveting another's time, talents, or treasures, and enable us to help them protect what

is rightfully theirs.

Special prayers of intercession may follow.

M: Lord, we pray in the precious name of Jesus.

C: Amen.

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.

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THE SACRAMENT St. Peter Lutheran Church practices “member communion.” We invite confirmed members to come

forward to partake of the Sacrament. Thank you for your consideration.

This dialog (also known as the “preface”) leads into the heart of the Sacrament portion of the

service. In its exalted sentences we have the oldest and least changed part of the liturgy. There is

evidence of its use in the 100’s AD.

M: The Lord be with you.

C: And also with you.

M: Lift up your hearts.

C: We lift them up unto the Lord.

M: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

C: It is good and right so to do.

M: It is truly good and right that we should at all times and in all places give you thanks, O Lord,

holy Father, almighty and everlasting God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who brought the gift

of salvation to all people by his death on the tree of the cross, so that the devil, who overcame us

by a tree would in turn by a tree be overcome. Therefore, with all the saints on earth and hosts of

heaven, we praise your holy name and join in their glorious song:

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HOLY, HOLY, HOLY (SANCTUS)

WORDS OF INSTITUTION M: Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night he was betrayed, took bread; and when he had given thanks,

he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying: “Take and eat. This is my body, which is given

for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”

Then he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it all of you; this is

my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins. Do this,

whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

M: The peace of the Lord be with you always.

C: Amen

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O CHRIST, LAMB OF GOD (AGNUS DEI)

DISTRIBUTION OF THE LORD’S SUPPER

During the distribution you are invited to join in singing the indicated hymns or to use the time for

private prayer and meditation. Appropriate prayers are found on page 11 in the front of the hymnal.

A personal preparation for the Lord’s Supper is found on page 156.

DISTRIBUTION HYMNS Drawn to the Cross

Christian Worship #387

Your Works, Not Mine, O Christ

Christian Worship #401

God Is Here! As We His People

Christian Worship #532

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THANKSGIVING AND BLESSING

M: O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

C: And his mercy endures forever.

M: We give thanks, almighty God, that you have refreshed us with this Holy Supper. We pray that

through it you will strengthen our faith in you and increase our love for one another. We ask this

in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one

God, now and forever.

C: Amen.

M: The Lord bless you and keep you.

The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you.

The Lord look on you with favor and give you peace.

C: Amen.

SONG OF SIMEON