THIRD SUNDAY IN ADVENT

THIRD SUNDAY IN ADVENT
December 12, 2021

OPENING HYMN: #338 - Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus

INVOCATION
Pastor: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.

LIGHTING OF THE ADVENT WREATH
Three Advent candles are lit.

Pastor: Let us pray.
O Lord, let the lighting of these candles signify that You are the light that shines in all the darkness of our lives. As we wait, watch, hope, and pray, guide us all to reflect Your light and let it shine; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
People: Amen.

OPENING SENTENCES      Zephaniah 3:14a, 15b; 16b–17, 20
Pastor:            Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart.
People:          The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil.

Pastor: “Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak.
People: The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save;

Pastor: He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love;
People: He will exult over you with loud singing.

Pastor: I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” says the Lord.
People: We worship You, O Lord!

CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION Psalm 25:6–7
Pastor: Having emerged from the waters of Baptism as God’s new creation in Christ, we confess our sins to God and one another.

A time of silence is observed.

Pastor: We confess to You, O Lord, that we are captive to sin in thought, word, and deed. We have wandered from You. Our wonderings have at times turned into doubts that drew us away from You.
People: Remember Your mercy, O Lord, and Your steadfast love, for they have been from of old.

Pastor: Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
People: according to Your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of Your goodness, O Lord!

Pastor: 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.
People: Amen.

+ WORD +

INTROIT        Psalm 146:5–8; antiphon: Philippians 4:4
Pastor:            Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.
People:          Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God,

Pastor: who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever;
People: who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry.

Pastor: The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.
People: Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Pastor: Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.

KYRIE
Pastor: In peace let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.

Pastor: For the peace from above and for our salvation let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.

Pastor: For the peace of the whole world, for the well-being of the Church of God, and for the unity of all let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.

Pastor: For this holy house and for all who offer here their worship and praise let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy.

Pastor: Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.
People: Amen.

SALUTATION and PRAYER OF THE DAY
Pastor: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.

Pastor: Let us pray.
You, Lord Jesus, caused the blind to see, the lame to walk, the deaf to hear, the possessed to be free, the dead to be raised. By Your death and resurrection, You promise to raise us to new life. You are the One who alone can answer all our wonderings. You alone are the Way to abundant life. Fill us with the joy that comes from You alone that our lives may radiate Your joy in this broken world; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
People: Amen.

OLD TESTAMENT READING Zephaniah 3:14–20
(God will gather His scattered people and restore them to Him.)
14Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion;
shout, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
15The Lord has taken away the judgments against you;
he has cleared away your enemies.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;
you shall never again fear evil.
16On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
“Fear not, O Zion;
let not your hands grow weak.
17The Lord your God is in your midst,
a mighty one who will save;
he will rejoice over you with gladness;
he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.
18I will gather those of you who mourn for the festival,
so that you will no longer suffer reproach.
19Behold, at that time I will deal
with all your oppressors.
And I will save the lame
and gather the outcast,
and I will change their shame into praise
and renown in all the earth.
20At that time I will bring you in,
at the time when I gather you together;
for I will make you renowned and praised
among all the peoples of the earth,
when I restore your fortunes
before your eyes,” says the Lord.

Lector: This is the Word of the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.

PSALM           Psalm 85; antiphon: v.2
Pastor:            You forgave the iniquity of Your people;
You covered all their sin.
People:          Lord, You were favorable to Your land;
You restored the fortunes of Jacob.

Pastor: You forgave the iniquity of Your people;
You covered all their sin.
People: You withdrew all Your wrath;
You turned from Your hot anger.

Pastor: Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
and put away Your indignation toward us!
People: Will You be angry with us forever?
Will You prolong Your anger to all generations?

Pastor: Will You not revive us again,
that Your people may rejoice in You?
People: Show us Your steadfast love, O Lord,
and grant us Your salvation.

Pastor: Let me hear what God the Lord will speak,
for He will speak peace to His people, to His saints;
but let them not turn back to folly.
People: Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him,
that glory may dwell in our land.

Pastor: Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;
righteousness and peace kiss each other.
People: Faithfulness springs up from the ground,
and righteousness looks down from the sky.

Pastor: Yes, the Lord will give what is good,
and our land will yield its increase.
People: Righteousness will go before Him
and make His footsteps a way.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Pastor: You forgave the iniquity of Your people;
You covered all their sin.

EPISTLE Philippians 4:4–7
(The Lord invites us to bring our worries to Him in prayer.)
4Rejoice 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.

Lector: This is the Word of the Lord.
People: Thanks be to God.

VERSE Matthew 11:10b
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

HOLY GOSPEL Luke 7:18–28 (29–35)
(The lame walk, the blind see, and the poor have good news spoken to them.)

Pastor: The Holy Gospel according to St. Luke, the seventh chapter.
People: Glory to You, O Lord.

18The disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John, 19calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” 20And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” 21In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight. 22And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. 23And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”
24When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 25What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who are dressed in splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings’ courts. 26What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 27This is he of whom it is written,
“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who will prepare your way before you.’
28I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” 29(When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John, 30but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.)
31“To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? 32They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,
“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’
33For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ 34The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ 35Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

Pastor: The Gospel of the Lord.
People: Praise to You, O Christ.

HYMN OF THE DAY: #331 – The Advent of Our King

SERMON

NICENE CREED
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth
and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only-begotten Son of God,
begotten of His Father before all worlds,
God of God, Light of Light,
very God of very God,
begotten, not made,
being of one substance with the Father,
by whom all things were made;
who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven
and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary
and was made man;
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate.
He suffered and was buried.
And the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures
and ascended into heaven
and sits at the right hand of the Father.
And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord and giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified,
who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe in one holy Christian and apostolic Church,
I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins,
and I look for the resurrection of the dead
and the life + of the world to come. Amen.

PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
After each petition:
Pastor:      … we pray:
People:    hear us, coming Lord.
At conclusion:
Pastor:            … in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
People:          Amen.

LORD’S PRAYER      Matthew 6:9–13
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.

CLOSING PRAYER
Pastor: Let us pray.
Lord Jesus Christ, we implore You to hear our prayers and to lighten the darkness of our hearts by Your gracious visitation; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
People: Amen.

BENEDICTION         Philippians 4:5-7; Numbers 6:24–26
Pastor:            The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

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 + give you peace.
People:          Amen.

DISMISSAL
Pastor: Go in peace! Serve the Lord!
People: Thanks be to God.

CLOSING HYMN: #361 – O Little Town of Bethlehem