St Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church
313 4th St, Manistee, MI 49660-2901
website: stpaulsmanistee.com
facebook.com/SPLCManistee
Telephone: 231-299-1022
February 20, 2022: Epiphany 7
Theme: Jesus Reveals What Love Is
Prayer Before Worship – Please read “For Love of Others” front of hymnal, page 137
Hymn 257, verses 1 & 2(Reflects the Psalm)
Word & Sacrament, front of hymnal, 26
Prayer: Gracious Father,/ keep Your family, the Church, always faithful to You,/ that we may lean on the hope of Your promises/ & be strong in the power of Your love; through Your Son Jesus Christ our LORD,/ who lives & reigns with You & the Holy Spirit,/ one God, now & forever. (Sing) Amen.
Old Testament Lesson: Genesis 45:3-8, 15
Even though his brothers mistreated him, Joseph shows them love by forgiving them, by revealing himself to them after he led them to repentance, by pointing to God’s providential care, and by providing for their needs and the needs of their families.
3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence. 4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph,the one you sold into Egypt! 5 And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. 6 For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will be no plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt. 15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept over them. Afterward his brothers talked with him.
Psalm 103, front of hymnal, page 105
God’s constant and complete forgiveness fills us with peace. His love & compassion remain with us forever.
Epistle: 1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-49
Through Christ’s resurrection, the guarantee of our forgiveness, we know that we also shall rise. Our corrupted and sinful flesh will be replaced with the glorious, holy likeness of Christ.
35 But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” 36 How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. 37 When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. 38 But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body. 42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”[a]; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. 46 The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven. 48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 And just as we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly man.
Hymn 479
Gospel: Luke 6:27-38
Jesus, whose life & message was one of love for sinners, instructs us to show love to others as well, even to our enemies.
27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you. 32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. 37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Sermon Text:Gospel
Theme: Love as Jesus does
1. Whom?
(Rom 8:7)“The sinful mind is hostile to God,”
2. How?
3 Why ?
Nicene Creed, front of hymnal, page 31
Thankoffering
Prayer of church and Lord's Prayer, page 32
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Distribution of Lord’s Supper to the members of St Paul's & other WELS or ELS congregations who by their membership have indicated they are qualified to examine themselves (1 Cor 11:27-29) & to express oneness in faith (1 Cor 10:17).
Hymn 492 during distribution
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Hymn 257, verse 3