Lord God, heavenly Father, who of great love and mercy gave us Your Son to be made man and die on the cross for us: put Your Holy Spirit into our hearts, that we may confide wholly in Your Son alone, and by Him believe as firmly in the forgiveness of our sins and eternal life as the centurion believed that He would save his sick servant with a word. We have His word that whoever believes in Him will never perish. Grant therefore, dear Father in heaven, that we may believe it with a resolute heart and remain steadfast in it until our final end. Amen.
Welcome! We ask all of you, both visitors and members, to sign a Welcome card located in the pew rack. Please fill out this card, place it in the offering plate, or hand it to an usher as you leave the service.
Our Communion Practice: Lutherans believe that the Lord’s Supper demonstrates a oneness with Christ in faith, life, and worship among those who receive Communion. Reception of the Lord’s Supper by Christians not in fellowship with us would imply a oneness which does not yet exist. For this reason, we welcome those with whom we have “altar and pulpit fellowship” to the Lord’s Supper. This includes members of sister congregations of the LC-MS, members of the American Association of Lutheran Churches, and Lutheran Church Canada; as well as members of partner churches throughout the World. If you would like to know more about this practice please arrange a time to speak with our pastor.
Prayers – We continue to pray for our home-bound members:
St. John’s – Florence Krege;
Our Savior – Charlotte Scepaniak, Doris Vilhauer, Esther Sieler, Betty Zundel, Naomi Pulling, Calvin & Oriole Nelson, Vera Hyatt, Vi Schnaidt, Lovera Smith, Ken & Dorothy Maas, Loretta Podoll, Larry Nupen.
We also pray for the children we sponsor through Mission Haiti: Michelet Voltaire Jean, Michel Djoury, and Orgea Djouna.
Introit Psalm 97:1, 10–12; antiphon: vv. 6, 9
The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
and all the peoples see his glory.
For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!
O you who love the Lord, hate evil!
He preserves the lives of his saints; he delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
Light is sown for the righteous,
and joy for the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy name!
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be forever. Amen.
The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
and all the peoples see his glory.
For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
Collect of the Day
Almighty and everlasting God, mercifully look upon our infirmities and stretch forth the hand of Your majesty to heal and defend us; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Old Testament Reading 2 Kings 5:1–15a
1Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and in high favor, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper.
2Now the Syrians on one of their raids had carried off a little girl from the land of Israel, and she worked in the service of Naaman’s wife.
3She said to her mistress, “Would that my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”
4So Naaman went in and told his lord, “Thus and so spoke the girl from the land of Israel.”
5And the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.”
So he went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothes.
6And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you Naaman my servant, that you may cure him of his leprosy.”
7And when the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Only consider, and see how he is seeking a quarrel with me.”
8But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come now to me, that he may know that there is a prophet in Israel.”
9So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha’s house.
10And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.”
11But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper.
12Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage.
13But his servants came near and said to him, “My father, it is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”
14So he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
15Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and he came and stood before him.
Gradual Psalm 102:15–16
Nations will fear the name of the Lord,
and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory.
For the Lord builds up Zion;
he appears in his glory.
Epistle Romans 1:8–17
8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world.
9For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I mention you
10always in my prayers, asking that somehow by God’s will I may now at last succeed in coming to you.
11For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you—
12that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.
13I want you to know, brothers, that I have often intended to come to you (but thus far have been prevented), in order that I may reap some harvest among you as well as among the rest of the Gentiles.
14I am under obligation both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to the wise and to the foolish.
15So I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
17For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
Holy Gospel Matthew 8:1–13
1When [Jesus] came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him.
2And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”
3And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
4And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”
5When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him,
6“Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.”
7And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.”
8But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.
9For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
10When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.
11I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,
12while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
13And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.
Acknowledgments
The Introit, Collect, Gradual, and Verse are from Lutheran service Book: Altar Book, copyright 2006 CPH. All Scripture quotations, including those from Lutheran Service Book, are from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
St. John’s
Organist: Phyllis Yeske
Ushers: Mic & Jen Daggett
Next Week: Ray & Cyndy Larson
Last Week: Attendance – 30; Offering – $935
Our Savior
Organist: Zachary Daggett
Elders: Russell Brandt & Brandon Christianson
Altar Guild: Don & Rachel Hoops
Acolytes: Dalton Lee & Rhylan Tschappat
Last Week: Attendance – 73; Sunday School – 20
Offering – General Fund $2,314; Sunday School $6;
Board of Social Ministry $75; Total $2,395
Schedule for the Week
Sunday St. John’s Divine Service w/ Communion – 8:15 am
Sunday School – 9:30 am
Bible Study at Our Savior – 9:45 am
Our Savior Divine Service w/ Communion – 10:45 am
Adult Catechism Class – after the service
Bible Bowl – after the service, until 1:30 pm
Ordination & Installation of Ray Anderson – 4:00 pm at St. Paul’s in Leola
Monday Mat Ladies – 1:00 pm
Tuesday Bible Study – 6:30 am
Deacons – 9:00 am
Wednesday Catechism Class – 5:00 pm
Prayer Service – 6:00 pm
Bible Study – 6:30 pm
Next Sunday St. John’s Service of the Word – 8:15 am
St. John’s Voters’ Meeting – after the service
Sunday School – 9:30 am
Our Savior Divine Service w/ Communion – 10:45 am
Adult Catechism Class – after the service
Bible Bowl – after the service
St. John’s Voters’ Meeting will be next week, Sunday, January 30
th after the service.
Bible Bowl – The youth 6
th grade and up will be preparing for Bible Bowl beginning today after the service, until about 1:30. If you’d like to provide them with a lunch sometime within the next few months, there is a sign-up sheet on the kitchen window counter. The SD District Bible Bowl will be Saturday, March 26
th in Pierre.
In addition to the circuit and district Bible Bowl for youth, we plan to have an “In-House” Congregational Bible Bowl again this year. Gather a team of 3 or 4 individuals and sign-up with a "team name". The topics will be Genesis chapters 1-36, and the first article of the Apostle’s Creed from Luther’s Small Catechism. Questions may be multiple choice, fill in the blank, and question/answer format. Even if you can't get a team together, plan to come and enjoy the fellowship! The date is yet to be determined for the in-house Bible Bowl. If you have any questions about Bible Bowl, contact Eric Johnson at 216-6701.
The Ordination & Installation of Ray Anderson at St. Paul’s in Leola will be today at 4:00 pm. You are welcome to attend!
Yearly Statements – A record of your offerings in 2021 can be picked up from the table in the narthex.
Offering Envelopes for 2022 – Please pick up your envelopes in the fellowship hall. Your number may have changed, in order to keep the list in alphabetical order. Throw out any old envelopes you may have in order to avoid mix-ups in record-keeping. Thank you!
Annual Reports – Chairpersons of all Boards and Circles, please turn in the annual report for your group to the office, or email it to
oursaviorlutheran@nvc.net.
Pennies for Life – In gratitude to God, and as a way of helping the ministry of Lutherans for Life, please give a penny for each year of your life!
Just drop your pennies of gratitude into the “Pennies for Life” jar. When it’s full, a check for the total amount will be sent to Lutherans for Life to help with educational projects and outreach.
Your pennies will help us tell others that life is a precious gift from God!
The LCMS has launched a Million Dollar Life Match. The LCMS will match $1 million in funds dedicated by our congregations for their local pro-life action and activity, including caring for women in crisis pregnancies and providing support for moms, dads and babies. The LCMS will match our congregations’ support of pregnancy resource centers, LCMS Recognized Service Organizations and more. The full name of this effort is the 1 John 3 Initiative Million Dollar Life Match. Indeed, 1 John 3 says it all:
“By this we know love, that [Christ] laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth” (1 John 3:16–18).
LCMS Stewardship Ministry – January 23
Matthew 8:8 – “But the centurion replied, ‘Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.’ ” The Word of the Lord is powerful and effective. What God says, goes. “Let there be light.” And there was light. His Word is still effective and creative for us: “This is my Body given for you.” “Your sins are forgiven.” This is why it is no burden for us to live according to the Word of God. We know that His Word is always bent on our blessing.
The Gospel of Christ is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Gentile (Rom. 1:8–17). Even in the Old Testament, the Gentiles were beneficiaries of God’s saving power. Though unimpressed at first with the Word of God, a Syrian commander is persuaded to receive that Word, and in the water he is cleansed and brought to faith in the God of Israel (2 Kings 5:1–15a). Evil is overcome by good (Rom 12:16–21). So also in the New Testament, a Roman centurion demonstrates great and humble faith in the Lord (Matt. 8:1–13). All he needs is the Word of Christ, for he trusts that Jesus’ Word of healing has authority to accomplish what it says. And indeed it does. The centurion’s faith is praised by our Lord above that of any Israelite. For the last shall be first, and the first last. Apart from faith in Christ, there is no salvation—not even for a Jew—but only weeping and gnashing of teeth.
