'The book of Revelation gives us the vision of the end of time. The word ‘end’ can be defined as a stopping point, but a richer and fuller meaning might be expressed in the use of the word ‘goal.’ The goal of time is the healing of all things.'
Friday, December 31, 2021
Service of the Word on New Year's Eve - December 31, 2021, 6:30 pm
The livestream may be found here.
OPENING MUSIC Two Improvisations
From Heaven Above
Greet Now the
Swiftly Changing Year
Stand
XHYMN Greet Now the Swiftly Changing Year Green LBW 181
With joy and penitence sincere.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
With thanks embrace another year of grace.
2
Remember
now the Son of God
And how he shed his infant blood.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
With thanks embrace another year of grace.
3
This
Jesus came to end sin’s war;
This name of names for us he bore.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
With thanks embrace another year of grace.
4
His
love abundant far exceeds
The volume of a whole year’s needs.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
With thanks embrace another year of grace.
5
With
him as Lord to lead our way
In want and in prosperity,
What need we fear in earth or space
In this new year of grace!
6
“All
glory be to God on high,
And peace on earth!” the angels cry.
Rejoice! Rejoice!
With thanks embrace another year of grace.
7
God,
Father, Son, and Spirit, hear!
To all our pleas incline your ear;
Upon our lives rich blessings trace
In this new year of grace!
DIALOG
Holy is the Lord, the Almighty,
He
was, he is, and he is to come.
He is worthy of glory and honor and power.
He
created all things. By his will they came to be.
Worthy is Christ, the Lamb who was slain;
worthy
to take the scroll and break its seals.
By his blood he purchased for God
people
of every race and tongue, of every folk and nation.
Christ made of them a kingdom
and
priests to serve our God.
And they shall reign on earth forever.
Amen.
Come, Lord Jesus.
CONFESSION OF FAITH
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
PSALMODY: Psalm 8
1 O | Lord our Lord,*
how
exalted is your name in | all the world!
2 Out of the mouths of in- | fants and children*
your majesty is
praised a- | bove the heavens.
3 You have set up
a stronghold against your | adversaries,*
to
quell the enemy and | the avenger.
4 When I consider your heavens, the work | of your fingers,*
the moon and the
stars you have set | in their courses,
5 what is man
that you should be mind- | ful of him,*
the
son of man that you should | seek him out?
6 You have made him but little lower | than the angels;*
you adorn him with
glo- | ry and honor;
7 you give him
mastery over the works | of your hands;*
you
put all things un- | der his feet:
8 all | sheep and oxen,*
even the wild
beasts | of the field,
9 the birds of
the air, the fish | of the sea,*
and
whatsoever walks in the paths | of the sea.
10 O | Lord our Lord,*
how exalted is your
name in | all the world!
The Lord be with you.
And also
with you.
Eternal Father, you have placed us
in a world of space and time, and
through the events of our lives
you bless us with your love. Grant that in
this new year we may know your
presence, see your love at work, and
live in the light of the event
which gives us joy forever—the coming of
your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
Sit
FIRST
READING Ecclesiastes 3:1-13
For everything there is a season,
and a time for every matter under heaven:
2a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
3a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
4a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
5a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
6a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to throw away;
7a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
8a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.
9What gain have the workers from their toil? 10I have
seen the business that God has given to everyone to be busy with. 11He
has made everything suitable for its time; moreover he has put a sense of past
and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from
the beginning to the end. 12I know that there is nothing better for
them than to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live; 13moreover,
it is God's gift that all should eat and drink and take pleasure in all their
toil.
The
Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
SECOND READING Revelation
21:1-6
1I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and
the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2And
I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3And I heard a
loud voice from the throne saying,
“See, the home of God is among
mortals.
He will dwell with them;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them;
4he will wipe every tear
from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be
no more,
for the first things have passed
away.”
5And the one who was
seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said,
“Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” 6aThen
he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the
end.”
THIRD READING Matthew 25:31–46
31When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the
angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32All the nations will be gathered
before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd
separates the sheep from the goats, 33and
he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 34Then the king will say to those
at his right hand, 'Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the
kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35for I was hungry and you gave me
food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and
you welcomed me, 36I was
naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in
prison and you visited me.' 37Then
the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and
gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38And when was it that we saw you
a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39And when was it that we saw you
sick or in prison and visited you?' 40And
the king will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the
least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.' 41Then he will say to those at his
left hand, 'You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire
prepared for the devil and his angels; 42for
I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to
drink, 43I was a stranger and
you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in
prison and you did not visit me.'
44Then they also will answer, 'Lord, when was it that we
saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did
not take care of you?' 45Then
he will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the
least of these, you did not do it to me.'
46And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the
righteous into eternal life."
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks
be to God.
SERMON
Stand
XHYMN From Heaven Above Green LBW 51
Stanzas 1-2, 8, 13-14
1 From
heav’n above to earth I come
to
bring good news to ev’ryone!
Glad
tidings of great joy I bring
to
all the world, and gladly sing:
2 To
you this night is born a child
of
Mary, chosen virgin mild;
this
newborn child of lowly birth
shall
be the joy of all the earth.
8 Welcome
to earth, O noble Guest,
through
whom this sinful world is blest!
You
turned not from our needs away!
How
can our thanks such love repay?
13 My
heart for very joy now leaps;
my
voice no longer silence keeps;
I
too must join the angel-throng
to
sing with joy his cradle-song:
14 “Glory
to God in highest heav’n,
who
unto us his Son has giv’n.”
With
angels sing in pious mirth:
a
glad new year to all the earth!
THE
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
Let us pray.
Almighty
God, giver of all things, with gladness we give thanks for all your goodness.
We bless you for the love which has created and which sustains us from day to
day. We praise you for the gift of your Son our Savior, through whom you have
made known your will and grace. We thank you for the Holy Spirit, the comforter;
for your holy Church; for the means of grace; for the lives of all faithful and
good people; and for the hope of the life to come. Help us to treasure in our
hearts all that our Lord has done for us, and enable us to show our
thankfulness by lives that are wholly given to your service.
Hear us, good Lord.
Save
and defend your whole Church, purchased with the precious blood of Christ. Give
it pastors and ministers filled with your Spirit, and strengthen it through the
Word and the holy sacraments. Make it perfect in love and in all good works,
and establish it in the faith delivered to the saints. Sanctify and unite your
people in all the world, that one holy Church may bear witness to you, the
creator and redeemer of all.
Hear us, good Lord.
Give
your wisdom and heavenly grace to all pastors and to those who hold office in
your Church, that, by their faithful service, faith may abound and your kingdom
increase.
Hear us, good Lord.
Send
the light of your truth into all the earth. Raise up faithful servants of
Christ to labor in the Gospel both at home and in distant lands.
Hear us, good Lord.
In
your mercy strengthen the younger churches and support them in times of trial.
Make them steadfast, abounding in the work of the Lord, and let their faith and
zeal for the Gospel refresh and renew the witness of your people everywhere.
Hear us, good Lord.
Preserve
our nation in justice and honor, that we may lead a peaceable life of
integrity. Grant health and favor to all who bear office in our land,
especially to Joseph Biden, the President
of the United States; Thomas Wolf, the Governor of Pennsylvania, and all those
who make, administer, and judge our laws, and help them to serve this
people according to your holy will.
Hear us, good Lord.
Take
from us all hatred and prejudice, give us the spirit of love, and dispose our
days in your peace. Prosper the labors of those who take counsel for the
nations of the world, that mutual understanding and common endeavor may be
increased among all peoples.
Hear us, good Lord.
Bless
the North American Lutheran Seminary, all schools of the Church, and all
colleges, universities, and centers of research and those who teach in them.
Bestow your wisdom in such measure that people may serve you in Church and
state and that our common life may be conformed to the rule of your truth and
justice.
Hear us, good Lord.
Sanctify
our homes with your presence and joy. Keep our children in the covenant of
their baptism and enable their parents to rear them in a life of faith and
devotion. By the spirit of affection and service unite the members of all
families, that they may show your praise in our land and in all the world.
Hear us, good Lord.
Let
your blessing rest upon the seedtime and harvest, the commerce and industry,
the leisure and rest, the arts and culture of our people. Take under your
special protection those whose work is difficult or dangerous, and be with all
who lay their hands to any useful task. Give them just rewards for their labor
and the knowledge that their work is good in your sight.
Hear us, good Lord.
Special supplications, intercessions, and thanksgivings may
be made.
Comfort
with the grace of your Holy Spirit all who are in sorrow or need, sickness or
adversity. Remember those who suffer persecution for the faith. Have mercy on
those to whom death draws near. Bring consolation to those in sorrow or
mourning. And to all grant a measure of your love, taking them into your tender
care.
Hear us, good Lord.
We
remember with thanksgiving those who have loved and served you in your Church
on earth, who now rest from their labors. Keep us in fellowship with all your
saints, and bring us at last to the joy of your heavenly kingdom.
Hear us, good Lord.
All
these things and whatever else you see that we need, grant us, Father, for the
sake of him who died and rose again, and now lives and reigns with you in the
unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever.
Amen
As our Savior has taught
us, we are bold to say:
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
PRAYER AND BENEDICTION
Jesus, Lord of time,
hold us in your eternity.
Jesus, image of God,
travel with us the life of faith.
Jesus, friend of sinners,
heal the brokenness of our world.
Jesus, Lord of tomorrow,
draw us into your future.
The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious
to you;
the Lord look upon you with favor, and + give you peace.
Amen
XHYMN O God, Our Help in Ages Past Green LBW 320
our
hope for years to come,
our
shelter from the stormy blast,
and
our eternal home:
2 Under
the shadow of your throne
your
saints have dwelt secure;
sufficient
is your arm alone,
and
our defense is sure.
3 Before
the hills in order stood
or
earth received its frame,
from
everlasting you are God,
to
endless years the same.
4 A
thousand ages in your sight
are
like an evening gone,
short
as the watch that ends the night
before
the rising sun.
5 Time,
like an ever-rolling stream,
soon
bears us all away;
we
fly forgotten, as a dream
dies
at the op’ning day.
6 O
God, our help in ages past,
our
hope for years to come,
still
be our guard while troubles last
and
our eternal home!
Dismissal
Go in peace. Serve the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
St Stephen Lutheran Church
55 Forsythe Road
Pittsburgh PA 15220
(412) 279-5868
office@ststephenpittsburgh.org
Saturday Evening Worship – 6:30 pm
Sunday Morning Worship – 10:30 am
