Wednesday April 2, 2025 | Lent Midweek 4
Lent is about repentance of sin and faith in God’s forgiveness. When we confess our sins, we normally think about the wrongs we have committed, whether in thoughts, words, or deeds, as well as the good things we have failed to do. But sin is no simple or temporary issue. Sin is a matter of life and …
PINNACLE LUTHERAN CHURCH | The Hand of the Lord Who Raises the Dead
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HYMN: #423 – Jesus, Refuge of the Weary (vs 1 & 3)
HYMN: #421 – Jesus, Grant That Balm and Healing (vs 1 & 4)
HYMN: #422 – On My Heart Imprint Your Image
Pinnacle Lutheran Church
Lent Midweek 4
April 2, 2025
The Hand of the Lord Who Raises the Dead
+ AS WE GATHER +
Lent is about repentance of sin and faith in God’s forgiveness. When we confess our sins, we normally think about the wrongs we have committed, whether in thoughts, words, or deeds, as well as the good things we have failed to do. But sin is no simple or temporary issue. Sin is a matter of life and death; as we were reminded on Ash Wednesday, “remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” The ultimate punishment for sin is death. God’s ultimate salvation is, as we confess in the Nicene Creed, “the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” Already in the Old Testament, the hand of the Lord raised individuals who had died, as at the hands of the prophets Elijah and Elisha. Everyone believed that the Messiah, the Savior, would raise the dead when He came. Today we hear of one such incident: Jesus raising the widow’s son in Nain (Luke 7). When Jesus raised His friend Lazarus from the tomb, it could no longer be denied who Jesus is. Jesus finally proved that He is, as He said, “the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25) by His own resurrection. In the resurrection, God has turned death from enemy into the remedy in our deliverance from sin. The risen, ascended, and reigning Lord promises to raise us daily in repentance and faith, and on the Last Day, free us from sin in eternal life in our human bodies. “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another” (Job 19:25–27).
HYMN: #423 – Jesus, Refuge of the Weary (vs 1 & 3)
INVOCATION
P In the name of the Father and of the T Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C Amen.
OPENING SENTENCES Psalm 102:1
P Hear my prayer, O Lord;
C let my cry come to You!
Psalm 118:14–18
P The Lord is my strength and my song;
C He has become my salvation.
P Glad songs of salvation are in the tents of the righteous:
C “The right hand of the Lord does valiantly,
P the right hand of the Lord exalts,
C the right hand of the Lord does valiantly!”
P I shall not die, but I shall live,
C and recount the deeds of the Lord.
P The Lord has disciplined me severely,
C but He has not given me over to death.
PSALM Psalm 130; antiphon: v. 7
P O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with Him is plentiful redemption.
C Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord!
P O Lord, hear my voice!
C Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy!
P If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?
C But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.
P I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope;
C my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning.
P O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is plentiful redemption.
C And he will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
OLD TESTAMENT READING 1 Kings 17:8–24
L The Old Testament reading is from 1 Kings, the seventeenth chapter.
8Then the word of the Lord came to him, 9“Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” 10So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” 11And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” 12And she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.” 13And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. 14For thus says the Lord the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’” 15And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. 16The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that He spoke by Elijah.
17After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill. And his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18And she said to Elijah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son!” 19And he said to her, “Give me your son.” And he took him from her arms and carried him up into the upper chamber where he lodged, and laid him on his own bed. 20And he cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, have You brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?” 21Then he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, let this child’s life come into him again.” 22And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived. 23And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house and delivered him to his mother. And Elijah said, “See, your son lives.” 24And the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”
L This is the Word of the Lord
C Thanks be to God.
EPISTLE 1 Corinthians 15:12–28, 50–58
L The Epistle is from 1 Corinthians, the fifteenth chapter.
12Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
20But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at His coming those who belong to Christ. 24Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. 26The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27For “God has put all things in subjection under His feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that He is excepted who put all things in subjection under Him. 28When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subjected to Him who put all things in subjection under Him, that God may be all in all. . . .
50I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
55“O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”
56The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
L This is the Word of the Lord
C Thanks be to God.
HOLY GOSPEL Luke 7:11–17
P The Holy Gospel according to St. Luke, the seventh chapter.
C Glory to You, O Lord.
11Soon afterward [Jesus] went to a town called Nain, and His disciples and a great crowd went with Him. 12As He drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. 13And when the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.” 14Then He came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” 15And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. 16Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited His people!” 17And this report about Him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.
P This is the Gospel of the Lord.
C Praise to You, O Christ.
HYMN: #421 – Jesus, Grant That Balm and Healing (vs 1 & 4)
SERMON – The Hand of the Lord Who Raises the Dead
OFFERING
OFFERTORY LSB 159
OFFERING
KYRIE
C Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
PRAYER
P The Lord be with you.
C And with your spirit.
P Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, You sent Jesus with a compassionate hand to stop death in its tracks. Bless us that we may ever hold fast to His promises for us through His death and resurrection. Help us to always remember our Baptism, where we have been united to both Christ’s death and resurrection; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C Amen.
P Almighty God, our heavenly Father, Your mercies are new every morning; and though we deserve only punishment, You receive us as Your children and provide for all our needs of body and soul. Grant that we may heartily acknowledge Your merciful goodness, give thanks for all Your benefits, and serve You in willing obedience; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C Amen.
P Almighty and everlasting God, You despise nothing You have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and contrite hearts that lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness we may receive from You full pardon and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
C Amen.
P 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, our Lord.
C Amen.
LUTHER’S EVENING PRAYER
C 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.
BENEDICAMUS
P Let us bless the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
BENEDICTION
P The almighty and merciful Lord, the Father, the T Son, and the Holy Spirit, bless and preserve you.
C Amen.
HYMN: #422 – On My Heart Imprint Your Image
DISMISSAL
P Go in peace! Serve the Lord!
C Thanks be to God!
POSTLUDE MUSIC
Creative Worship for the Lutheran Parish, Series C, Quarter 3. Copyright © 2022 Concordia Publishing House. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
