The livestream from St. Stephen Lutheran Church is not available today.
If you cannot attend worship, you may worship using this Service of the Word, which includes hymns, Scripture readings, a homily, and prayers.
The order of service is below.
The livestreams will resume next Sunday, October 25, Reformation Sunday.
May God bless and keep you this Lord's Day!
SERVICE OF THE WORD – St. Stephen
Lutheran Church
October 18, 2020, the Twentieth
Sunday after Pentecost
HYMN Come, Thou Almighty King
1 Come, thou almighty King,
help us thy name to sing;
help us to praise;
Father all-glorious,
o’er all victorious,
come and reign over us,
Ancient of Days.
2 Come, thou incarnate Word,
gird on thy mighty sword;
our prayer attend.
Come and thy people bless,
and give thy word success,
and let thy righteousness
on us descend.
3 Come, holy Comforter,
thy sacred witness bear
in this glad hour!
Thou, who almighty art,
now rule in ev’ry heart,
and ne’er from us depart,
Spirit of pow’r.
4 To thee, great One in Three,
eternal praises be
hence evermore!
Thy sov’reign majesty
may we in glory see,
and to eternity
love and adore.
Text:
source unknown, c. 1757, alt.
DIALOG
Blessed are you, O Lord our God, king of the universe,
for
in your wisdom you have formed us.
You feed the hungry and clothe the naked.
We
bless you and praise your name forever.
You set free those who are bound.
We
bless you and praise your name forever.
You raise up those whose courage falters.
We
bless you and praise your name forever.
You provide for our every need.
Accept
our grateful praises.
You have called us from all peoples.
We
rejoice and bless your name forever.
You bless your people with peace.
We
bless you and praise your loving grace.
Blessed are you, O Lord our God, king of the universe,
for
in your wisdom you have formed us.
APOSTLES’ CREED
God has made us his people through our Baptism into
Christ. Living together in trust and hope, we confess our faith.
I
believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator
of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only
Son, our Lord.
He
was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and
born of the virgin Mary.
He
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was
crucified, died, and was buried.
He
descended into hell.
On
the third day he rose again.
He
ascended into heaven,
and
is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He
will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the
holy catholic Church,
the
communion of saints,
the
forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and
the life everlasting. Amen
PRAYER OF THE DAY
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray.
O God,
whose image we bear and whose name we carry,
yours is the world and all it contains.
Recall us to our true
allegiance,
so that above the powers and
rulers of this world
you alone may claim our fullest
loyalty and love.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your
Son,
who lives
and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit;
one God,
now and forever.
Amen
First READING Isaiah 45:1-7
1Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus,
whose right hand I have grasped
to subdue nations before him
and strip kings of their robes,
to open doors before him—
and the gates shall not be closed:
2I will go before you
and level the mountains,
I will break in pieces the doors of bronze
and cut through the bars of iron,
3I will give you the treasures of darkness
and riches hidden in secret places,
so that you may know that it is I, the Lord,
the God of Israel, who call you by your name.
4For the sake of my servant Jacob,
and Israel my chosen,
I call you by your name,
I surname you, though you do not know me.
5I am the Lord, and
there is no other;
besides me there is no god.
I arm you, though you do not know me,
6so that they may know, from
the rising of the sun
and from the west, that there is no one besides me;
I am the Lord, and there is no
other.
7I form light and create darkness,
I make weal and create woe;
I the Lord do all these things.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Gospel Matthew 22:15-22
The Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew.
Glory to you, O Lord.
15Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap
[Jesus] in what he said. 16So they sent their disciples to him,
along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and
teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one;
for you do not regard people with partiality. 17Tell us, then, what
you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” 18But
Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you
hypocrites? 19Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought
him a denarius. 20Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and
whose title?” 21They answered, “The emperor’s.” Then he said to
them, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to
God the things that are God’s.” 22When they heard this, they were
amazed; and they left him and went away.
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise
to you, O Christ.
HOMILY
HYMN OF
THE DAY Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good
Please meditate on the text of the hymn as it is played.
1 Sing praise to
God, the highest good,
the author of
creation,
the God of
love who understood
our need for
his salvation.
With healing
balm our souls he fills
and ev’ry
faithless murmur stills:
to God all praise
and glory!
2 What God’s
almighty pow’r has made,
in mercy he
is keeping;
by morning
glow or evening shade,
his eye is
never sleeping;
within the
kingdom of his might
all things
are just and good and right:
to God all
praise and glory!
3 We sought the
Lord in our distress;
O God, in
mercy hear us.
Our Savior
saw our helplessness
and came with
peace to cheer us.
For this we
thank and praise the Lord
who is by one
and all adored:
to God all
praise and glory!
4 Let all who
name Christ’s holy name
give God the
praise and glory.
Let all who
know his pow’r proclaim
aloud the
wondrous story.
Cast ev’ry
idol from its throne,
for God is
God, and he alone:
to God all
praise and glory!
Text:
Johann J. Schütz, 1640-1690; tr. Frances E. Cox, 1812-1897, adapt.
PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH
Father, we pray for the Church. In the
midst of a fallen and idolatrous world, may your people worship and proclaim
you alone as Lord of all creation and serve you with gladness. Lord, in your
mercy,
hear our prayer.
We pray for our congregation; in the midst
of a world that does not know you, let us be a people of hope, imitating your
Son and becoming examples for each other. Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
We pray for the world; let leaders look to
you to accomplish your purposes, and make them mindful that they do not rule
for themselves but instead they must serve you. Remember with favor our
President, and his administration, the Congress, the Courts, and all who serve
in government. Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
We pray for the oppressed, the sick, the
dying, the grieving, those in any need of body, mind, or spirit, especially
those we name before you:
The People may offer silent or spoken intercessions
and thanksgivings.
Lord, in
your mercy,
hear our
prayer.
We give you thanks for the marriage of
Robert Dawe and Kaitlyn Colhouer; give them your blessing, and strengthen their
union always. Lord, in your mercy,
hear our prayer.
We pray in
thanksgiving for those who have died, especially those dear to us who rest in
you. Help us to walk in faith, that we may join them on the great day when all
rulers, authorities and powers bow to you and praise your name. Lord, in your
mercy,
hear
our prayer.
Into your
hands, Father, we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in your steadfast love,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
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
The peace of the Lord be with you always.
And also with you.
BENEDICTION
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 us peace.
Amen
Be at peace. Serve the Lord.
Thanks be to God!
