PINNACLE LUTHERAN CHURCH “The Crucified and Risen Lord Jesus Christ Is Our Good Shepherd” FOURTH SUNDAY of EASTER – APRIL 30, 2023
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OPENING HYMN: #827 Hark, The Voice of Jesus Calling
HYMN OF THE DAY: # 803 Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee
CLOSING HYMN: #801 How Great Thou Art
PINNACLE LUTHERAN CHURCH
“The Good Shepherd”
FOURTH SUNDAY of EASTER
APRIL 30, 2023
+ AS WE GATHER +
The Crucified and Risen Lord Jesus Christ Is Our Good Shepherd
Although we “were straying like sheep,” the Lord Jesus Christ has willingly suffered and died for us, bearing our sins “in his body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24–25). We are healed by His wounds (1 Peter 2:24), and in His resurrection He gathers us to Himself as our Good Shepherd, by whose righteousness we “have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). Now through other shepherds whom He calls and sends in His name, He guards and keeps us in the green pastures of His Church, leading us beside the quiet waters of our Baptism and spreading the feast of His table before us. Since He has called us by the Gospel to be His own dear sheep, we also “hear his voice” and “know his voice” (John 10:3–4) in the faithful preaching of His Gospel, and we follow Him by faith. When we receive His Gospel, we have the abundant life and common unity of the entire flock under one Good Shepherd, in “the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship” and in “the breaking of bread and the prayers” (Acts 2:42).
WELCOME AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
OPENING HYMN: #827 Hark, The Voice of Jesus Calling
INVOCATION
P In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C Amen.
CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION Psalm 3:4, 8
P If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
C But if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Silence for meditation and reflection.
P Let us then confess our sins to God our Father.
C Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved You with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve Your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your holy name. Amen.
P 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 T Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C Amen.
+ Service of the Word +
INTROIT Psalm 23:1-6 antiphon: v. 1
(spoken responsively as marked)
1The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
3He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
5You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Kyrie
P In peace let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord, have mercy.
P For the peace from above and for our salvation let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord, have mercy.
P 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.
C Lord, have mercy.
P For this holy house and for all who offer here their worship and praise let us pray to the Lord.
C Lord, have mercy.
P Help, save, comfort, and defend us, gracious Lord.
C Amen.
SALUTATION and PRAYER OF THE DAY
P The Lord be with you.
C And also with you.
P Let us pray.
Almighty God, merciful Father, since You have wakened from death the Shepherd of Your sheep, grant us Your Holy Spirit that when we hear the voice of our Shepherd we may know Him who calls us each by name and follow where He leads; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C Amen.
FIRST READING Acts 2:42–47
42They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
L This is the Word of the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
GRADUAL adapt. from Matthew 28:7; Hebrews 2:7; Psalm 8:6 (spoken together)
Christ has risen from the dead.
[God the Father] has crowned him with glory and honor.
He has given him dominion over the works of his hands;
he has put all things under his feet.
EPISTLE 1 Peter 2:19–25
19This is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. 20For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 21For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 24He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 25For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
L This is the Word of the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
VERSE Romans 6:9; John 10:14 (spoken together)
Alleluia. We know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. Alleluia. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me. Alleluia.
HOLY GOSPEL John 10:1–10
P The Holy Gospel according to St. John, the Tenth chapter.
C Glory to You, O Lord.
1[Jesus said:] “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. 2But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
7So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
P This is the Gospel of the Lord.
C Praise to You, O Christ.
HYMN OF THE DAY: # 803 Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee
“He has Risen, He has Risen Indeed”
SERMON: “The Good Shepherd”
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 T everlasting. Amen.
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
After each petition: P … Lord, in Your mercy:
C hear our prayer.
At conclusion: P … one God, now and forever.
C 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
P Let us pray.
O God, from whom come all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works, give to us, Your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, that our hearts may be set to obey Your commandments and also that we, being defended from the fear of our enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C Amen.
BENEDICTION
P 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 T give you peace.
C Amen.
DISMISSAL
P Go in peace! Serve the Lord!
C Thanks be to God.
CLOSING HYMN: #801 How Great Thou Art
Creative Worship for the Lutheran Parish, Series C, Quarter 3. Copyright © 2022 Concordia Publishing House. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
