St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church Worship Services
At St. Paul's, you can
expect to find a traditional Lutheran worship service. We
follow the order of worship services from The
Lutheran Service Book. Holy Communion is offered the first
and third Sunday of each month. Services are at 9:30 a.m. with
Adult Bible Class and Sunday School at 10:45 a.m.
Our services are a conversation and interaction between God and His
people. Jesus said, "Wherever two or three are gathered
in My name, there I am in the midst of them." (Matthew
18:20). Jesus Christ, God in flesh, comes into our midst with
His grace in the Word of God, and in the Sacrament of Baptism.
We receive that grace and respond with prayer, praise, and
confession of faith.
The words and
structure of this service come from the ancient liturgy of the
Christian church. The service is structured to take us through
the life and ministry of Jesus, seeing in His life, our own.
We welcome you to join us in our conversation with our present God.
For those not familiar
with The Lutheran Service Book, we use six different
services. A
description of each service is provided below.
Divine
Service 3 with Holy Communion (LSB page 184)
This Service begins on page 184 in the Lutheran
Service Book. The service is a conversation and interaction between
God and His people. In Matthew 18:20 Jesus said, “Wherever two or
three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.”
Jesus Christ, God in flesh, comes into our midst with His grace and
mercy. He brings us His grace in the Word of God, in the Sacrament
of Baptism, and the Sacrament of the Altar. We receive that grace
and respond with prayer, praise, and confession of faith.
The words and structure of this service come from the
ancient liturgy of the Christian Church. The service is structured
to take us through the life and ministry of Jesus, seeing in His
life, our own. We welcome you to join us in our conversation with
our present God.
Jesus’ ministry began with His baptism
(Matthew
3:13-17).
The Invocation is to remind us that we have been
baptized in the name of the Triune God. We enter into our worship
being reassured of the covenant God made with us.
Jesus was led into the wilderness following His baptism
and was tempted by the devil
(Matthew
4:1-11).
He did not sin, but perfectly kept the law for us. We, who have not
kept the law, confess our sins to God and receive forgiveness from
Him through His spokesman; the pastor
(John
20:22-23).
After being tempted in the wilderness, Jesus actively
entered His ministry of preaching, teaching and healing. We
recognize that Jesus is coming into our presence in worship.
“Introit” literally means “entrance hymn.” We enter using the
changing theme of the day by means of Psalms or other scripture
verses. This concludes by singing the Gloria Patri, a song of
Glory to God.
As we prepare to receive God’s grace in Word and
Sacrament, we cry out for mercy in the Kyrie and then lift
our voices in praise in the Gloria in Excelsis. We then
prepare to hear the Word of God appointed for each day by praying
the Collect, a prayer that focuses on what we should gain
from God’s Word this day.
Jesus, the Word made flesh, preached and taught the
Word during His ministry. We hear readings from God’s Word. These
are normally a reading from the Old Testament and a New Testament
Letter. There is normally a response by the choir, or the
congregation, to the readings, followed by the focal point of the
service of the Word; the reading of the Gospel lesson. We respond
to the words of Jesus by confessing our faith in the Nicene Creed.
Then the Word is expounded upon in the sermon. We offer our gifts to
God in thanks for what He has done for us. We then conclude the
service of the Word by joining in the prayers of the church.
The service of the Sacrament begins with the Preface
and Proper Preface, which reminds us that we celebrate God’s
grace with the host of heaven who behold the Lamb seated on the
throne (Revelation
5).
When Jesus entered into Jerusalem to die for us, the crowd shouted
“Hosanna” (save us, we pray). We sing that same song in the
Santus, joining the host of heaven
(Revelation
7:9-10). We
then say the prayer Jesus taught us in preparation for receiving His
grace.
This brings us to the Words of Institution. Here
we hear the wondrous gospel promise of Jesus who comes to us in His
body and blood for the forgiveness of our sins and the strengthening
of our souls.
We then receive the body and blood,
after
careful examination of
our faith, our
belief concerning the Sacrament, and our
unity with Christ and our fellow believers in doctrine and practice.
The service continues by singing the Nunc Dimittus,
the song of Simeon
(Luke
2:29-32).
We then conclude with prayers and the Benediction, given to
Moses by God
(Numbers
6:24-26).
These remind us that Christ has ascended to the Father, but left us
His blessings and the promise of His continual presence and peace
(Matthew
28:20, John
14:27).
Divine
Service 3 without Holy Communion (LSB page 184)
This Service begins on page
184 in the Lutheran Service Book. Our service is a conversation and interaction between
God and His people. In Matthew 18:20 Jesus said, “Wherever two or
three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.”
Jesus Christ, God in flesh, comes into our midst with His grace and
mercy. He brings us His grace in the Word of God, in the Sacrament
of Baptism, and the Sacraments of the Altar. We receive that grace
and respond with prayer, praise, and confession of faith.
The words and structure of this service come from the
ancient liturgy of the Christian Church. The service is structured
to take us through the life and ministry of Jesus, seeing in His
life, our own. We welcome you to join us in our conversation with
our present God.
Jesus’ ministry began with His baptism (Matthew
3:13-17). The Invocation is to remind us that we have
been baptized in the name of the Triune God. We enter into our
worship being reassured of the covenant God made with us.
Jesus was led into the wilderness following His baptism
and was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-11). He did not sin, but
perfectly kept the law for us. We, who have not kept the law,
confess our sins to God and receive forgiveness from Him through His
spokesman; the Pastor (John 20:22-23).
After being tempted in the wilderness, Jesus actively
entered His ministry of preaching, teaching and healing. We
recognize that Jesus is coming into our presence in worship.
“Introit” literally means “entrance hymn.” We enter using the
changing theme of the day by means of Psalms or other scripture
verses. This concludes by singing the Gloria Patri, a song of
Glory to God.
As we prepare to receive God’s grace in Word and
Sacrament, we cry out for mercy in the Kyrie and then lift
our voices in praise in the Gloria in Excelsis. We then
prepare to hear the Word of God appointed each day by praying the
Collect, a prayer which focuses on what we should gain from
God’s Word this day.
Jesus, the Word made flesh, preached and taught the
Word during His ministry. We hear readings from God’s Word. These
are normally a reading from the Old Testament and a New Testament
Letter. There is normally a response by the choir or the
congregation to the readings, followed by the focal point of the
service of the Word, the reading of the Gospel lesson. We respond to
the Word by confessing our faith in the words of the Apostles
Creed. Then the Word is expounded upon in the sermon. There
remains our response to God’s precious Word by offering our gifts to
God in thanks for what He has done for us.
We continue the service of the Word by joining in the
prayers of the church, including the Lord’s
Prayer.
We then conclude with the Benediction, given Moses by
God (Numbers 6:24-26). This reminds us that Christ has ascended to
the Father, but has left us His blessings and the promise of His
continual presence and peace (Matthew 28:20, John 14:27).
Divine
Service 5 with Communion (LSB page 213)
This Service begins on page 213 in the Lutheran
Service Book. Our service is a conversation and interaction between
God and His people. In Matthew 18:20 Jesus said, “Wherever two or
three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.”
Jesus Christ, God in flesh, comes into our midst with His grace and
mercy. He brings us His grace in the Word of God, in the Sacrament
of Baptism, and the Sacrament of the Altar. We receive that grace
and respond with prayer, praise, and confession of faith.
The words and structure of this service come from the
ancient liturgy of the Christian Church. The service is structured
to take us through the life and ministry of Jesus, seeing in His
life, our own. We welcome you to join us in our conversation with
our present God, using hymns for our sung responses.
Jesus’ ministry began with His baptism (Matthew
3:13-17). The Invocation is to remind us that we have
been baptized in the name of the Triune God. We enter into our
worship being reassured of the covenant God made with us.
Jesus was led into the wilderness following His baptism
and was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-11). He did not sin, but
perfectly kept the law for us. We, who have not kept the law,
confess our sins to God and receive forgiveness from Him through His
spokesman; the pastor (John 20:22-23).
After being tempted in the wilderness, Jesus actively
entered His ministry of preaching, teaching and healing. We
recognize that Jesus is coming into our presence in worship.
“Introit” literally means “entrance hymn.” We enter using the
changing theme of the day by means of Psalms or other scripture
verses. This concludes by singing the Gloria Patri, a song of
Glory to God.
As we prepare to receive God’s grace in Word and
Sacrament, we cry out for mercy in the Kyrie and then lift
our voices in praise in the Gloria in Excelsis. We then
prepare to hear the Word of God appointed for each day by praying
the Collect, a prayer that focuses on what we should gain
from God’s Word this day.
Jesus, the Word made flesh, preached and taught the
Word during His ministry. We hear readings from God’s Word. These
are normally a reading from the Old Testament and a New Testament
Letter. There is normally a response by the choir, or the
congregation, to the readings, followed by the focal point of the
service of the Word, the reading of the Gospel lesson. We respond
to the words of Jesus by confessing our faith in the Nicene Creed.
Then the Word is expounded upon in the sermon. We offer our gifts to
God in thanks for what He has done for us. We then conclude the
service of the Word by joining in the prayers of the church.
The service of the Sacrament begins with the Preface
and Proper Preface, which reminds us that we celebrate God’s
grace with the host of heaven who behold the Lamb seated on the
throne (Revelation 5). When Jesus entered into Jerusalem to die for
us, the crowd shouted “Hosanna” (save us, we pray). We sing that
same song in the Santus, joining the host of heaven
(Revelation 7:9-10). We then say the prayer Jesus taught us in
preparation for receiving His grace.
This brings us to the Words of Institution. Here
we hear the wondrous gospel promise of Jesus who comes to us in His
body and blood for the forgiveness of our sins and the strengthening
of our souls.
We then receive the body and blood, after careful
examination of our faith, our belief concerning the Sacrament, and
our unity with Christ and our fellow believers in doctrine and
practice.
The service continues by singing the Post Communion
Canticle. We then conclude with prayers and the Benediction,
given to Moses by God (Numbers 6:24-26). These remind us that Christ
has ascended to the Father, but left us His blessings and the
promise of His continual presence and peace (Matthew 28:20, John
14:27).
Divine
Service 5 without Communion (LSB page 213)
This Service begins on page
213 in the Lutheran Service Book. Our service is a conversation and interaction between
God and His people. In Matthew 18:20 Jesus said, “Wherever two or
three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.”
Jesus Christ, God in flesh, comes into our midst with His grace and
mercy. He brings us His grace in the Word of God, in the Sacrament
of Baptism, and the Sacraments of the Altar. We receive that grace
and respond with prayer, praise, and confession of faith.
The words and structure of this service come from the
ancient liturgy of the Christian Church. The service is structured
to take us through the life and ministry of Jesus, seeing in His
life, our own. We welcome you to join us in our conversation with
our present God, using hymns for our sung responses.
Jesus’ ministry began with His baptism
(Matthew
3:13-17).
The Invocation is to remind us that we have been
baptized in the name of the Triune God. We enter into our worship
being reassured of the covenant God made with us.
Jesus was led into the wilderness following his baptism
and was tempted by the devil
(Matthew
4:1-11).
He did not sin, but perfectly kept the law for us. We, who have not
kept the law, confess our sins to God and receive forgiveness from
Him through His spokesman; the Pastor
(John
20:22-23).
After being tempted in the wilderness, Jesus actively
entered His ministry of preaching, teaching and healing. We
recognize that Jesus is coming into our presence in worship.
“Introit” literally means “entrance hymn.” We enter using the
changing theme of the day by means of Psalms or other scripture
verses. This concludes by singing the Gloria Patri, a song of
Glory to God.
As we prepare to receive God’s grace in Word and
Sacrament, we cry out for mercy in the Kyrie and then lift
our voices in praise in the Gloria in Excelsis. We then
prepare to hear the Word of God appointed each day by praying the
Collect, a prayer which focuses on what we should gain from
God’s Word this day.
Jesus, the Word made flesh, preached and taught the
Word during His ministry. We hear readings from God’s Word. These
are normally a reading from the Old Testament and a New Testament
Letter. There is normally a response by the choir or the
congregation to the readings, followed by the focal point of the
service of the Word, the reading of the Gospel lesson. We respond to
the Word by confessing our faith in the words of the Apostles
Creed. Then the Word is expounded upon in the sermon. There
remains our response to God’s precious Word by offering our gifts to
God in thanks for what He has done for us.
We continue the service of the Word by joining in the
prayers of the church, including the Lord’s Prayer.
We then conclude with the Benediction, given
Moses by God (Numbers
6:24-26).
This reminds us that Christ has ascended to the Father, but has left
us His blessings and the promise of His continual presence and peace
(Matthew
28:20, John
14:27).
Matins (LSB page 219)
This Service begins on page
219 in the Lutheran Service Book. Our service is a conversation and interaction between
God and His people. In Matthew 18:20 Jesus said, “Wherever two or
three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.”
Jesus Christ, God in flesh, comes into our midst with His grace and
mercy. He brings us His grace in the Word of God, in the Sacrament
of Baptism, and the Sacraments of the Altar. We receive that grace
and respond with prayer, praise, and confession of faith.
This service is a service of praise for the grace God
has shown us. We raise our voices in praise for what He brings us as
we gather around His Word.
This service joins our voices with those in heaven in
praise to God for the rich blessings of life and salvation, food and
provision, care and protection, and all His other blessings. The
words used in this order of worship are either direct quotes from
scripture or references to God’s Word.
The service opens with words from Psalm
51:15
and Psalm 70:1. We then give glory to the
Triune God, who is the focus of our worship.
At this point in the service a Psalm can be chosen to
read. This is often read responsively (the Pastor reads a phrase,
the congregation responds with the next phrase). This is followed by
the Venite, which is Psalm
95:1-7.
The Venite ends with singing glory to God.
Then comes the readings from God’s Word. This normally
consists of a reading from the Old Testament, a reading from one of
the New Testament letters, and the reading of the Gospel lesson.
There is frequently an anthem before the Gospel reading. After
reading, we remember God’s mercy, given in His Word, by giving Him
thanks.
The service continues with the sermon hymn, followed by
the sermon (an explanation of the Word read that day). We then
respond to what God has given us by offering our gifts in thanks for
the rich blessings we have received.
Following the offering, we have the Canticle.
This can be either the Te Deum Laudamus, the Benedictus,
or a hymn. The Te Deum is a song in which we recognize that Jesus
has come into our midst and joined us with the host of heaven in
singing His praise
(see Revelation
chapters 5-7).
The Benedictus is the song of Zachariah at the birth of
John the Baptist (Luke 1:68-79), in which Zachariah praises God, not
for John’s birth, but for fulfilling His promise to send the
Messiah, of whom John is the forerunner.
Our praise continues with the prayers in which we plead
for God’s mercy and, trusting in His grace, bring our prayers before
Him. This includes the Lord’s Prayer. The service then concludes
with the Benediction of St. Paul, found in 2 Corinthians
13:14, followed by a hymn. It is a great privilege to praise God for
His rich mercy.
Vespers (LSB page 229)
This
Service begins on page
229 in the Lutheran Service Book. Our service is a conversation and interaction between
God and His people. In Matthew 18:20 Jesus said, “Wherever two or
three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.”
Jesus Christ, God in flesh, comes into our midst with His grace and
mercy. He brings us His grace in the Word of God, in the Sacrament
of Baptism, and the Sacraments of the Altar. We receive that grace
and respond with prayer, praise, and confession of faith.
This service is a service of praise for the grace God
has shown us. We raise our voices in praise for what He brings us as
we gather around His Word.
This service joins our voices with those in heaven in
praise to God for the rich blessings of life and salvation, food and
provision, care and protection, and all His other blessings. The
words used in this order of worship are either direct quotes from
scripture or references to God’s Word.
The service opens with words from Psalm 51:15 and Psalm
40:13. We then give glory to the Triune God, who is the focus of our
worship.
At this point in the service a Psalm can be chosen to
read. This is often read responsively (the Pastor reads a phrase,
the congregation responds with the next phrase).
Then comes the readings from God’s Word. This normally
consists of a reading from the Old Testament, a reading from one of
the New Testament letters, and the reading of the Gospel lesson.
There is frequently an anthem before the Gospel reading. After
reading, we remember God’s mercy, given in His Word, by giving Him
thanks.
The service continues with the sermon hymn, followed by
the sermon (an explanation of the Word read that day). We then
respond to what God has given us by offering our gifts in thanks for
the rich blessings we have received.
Our praise continues with the prayers in which we plead
for God’s mercy and, trusting in His grace, bring our prayers before
Him. This includes the Lord’s Prayer. The service then concludes
with the Benediction of St. Paul, found in 2 Corinthians
13:14, followed by a hymn. It is a great privilege to praise God for
His rich mercy.
