Redeemer Virtual Worship | Second Sunday after Christmas (Jan. 3, 2021)

Join Zoom Fellowship at 10:30am

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WORSHIP BULLETIN
Second Sunday after Christmas | Word and Prayer

PRELUDE & WELCOME

CHRISTMAS GREETING
We praise you, O God, for your creating Word!
You set the foundations of the world and gave breath to every living thing. There is no Rock like you. Blessed be God, forevermore;
Our hearts sing of your mercy and might!
We praise you, O God, for your liberating Word!
In your steadfast love you led the people whom you redeemed, you guided them by your strength to the land of promise. You have lifted up the lowly.  Blessed be God, forevermore;
Our hearts sing of your mercy and might!
We praise you, O God, for your life-giving Word!
Your Word became flesh and lived among us, full of grace and truth. You have looked with favor on the lowliness of your servants. Blessed be God, forevermore;
Our hearts sing of your mercy and might!
Blessed be God, from this time on and forevermore, from the rising of the sun to its setting. With Miriam, Hannah, and Mary, we give you thanks and praise for your creating, liberating, and life-giving Word! Send us forth in the power of your Spirit to sing of your greatness and serve all people, following Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.      (Exodus 15; 1 Samuel 2; Psalm 113; Luke 1; John 1)

PRAYER OF THE DAY
We pray:  Almighty God, you have filled all the earth with the light of your incarnate Word. By your grace empower us to reflect your light in all that we do, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen

HYMN: Jesus, What a Wonderful Child TFF 51

THE WORD

First Reading: Jeremiah 31:7-14
 7 Thus says the Lord:
 Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
  and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
 proclaim, give praise, and say,
  “Save, O Lord, your people,
  the remnant of Israel.”
 8 See, I am going to bring them from the land of the north,
  and gather them from the farthest parts of the earth,
 among them the blind and the lame,
  those with child and those in labor, together;
  a great company, they shall return here.
 9 With weeping they shall come,
  and with consolations I will lead them back,
 I will let them walk by brooks of water,
  in a straight path in which they shall not stumble;
 for I have become a father to Israel,
  and Ephraim is my firstborn.

 10 Hear the word of the Lord, O nations,
  and declare it in the coastlands far away;
 say, “He who scattered Israel will gather him,
  and will keep him as a shepherd a flock.”
 11 For the Lord has ransomed Jacob,
  and has redeemed him from hands too strong for him.
 12 They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
  and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord,
 over the grain, the wine, and the oil,
  and over the young of the flock and the herd;
 their life shall become like a watered garden,
  and they shall never languish again.
 13 Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance,
  and the young men and the old shall be merry.
 I will turn their mourning into joy,
  I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow.
 14 I will give the priests their fill of fatness,
  and my people shall be satisfied with my bounty,
 says the Lord.
The Word of God (Thanks be to God)

Psalm 147:12-20
12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!
13 For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you.
14 He grants peace[a] within your borders; he fills you with the finest of wheat.
15 He sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes.
17 He hurls down hail like crumbs— who can stand before his cold?
18 He sends out his word, and melts them; he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.
19 He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and ordinances to Israel.
20 He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances.
Praise the Lord!

Second Reading: Ephesians 1:3-14
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. 5 He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight 9 he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. 11 In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, 12 so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; 14 this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.

Gospel Acclamation: Jesus, the Light of the World

The Holy Gospel According to John 1:1-18 
[C: Glory to you, O Lord]
[1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was in the beginning with God. 3All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being 4in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. 5The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
  6There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. 8He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. 9The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.]
  10He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. 11He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. 12But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, 13who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.
  14And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. 15(John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ”) 16From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.
P: The Gospel of the Lord C: Praise to you, O Christ

SERMON: Mr. David Scherer

HYMN: The First Noel ELW 300

CONFESSION of FAITH The  Nicene Creed
We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven,was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended in to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,and his kingdom will have no end.We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified,who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen. 

OFFERING PRAYER: We pray:  Gracious God, you came to us as one unknown,bringing joy and salvation to the earth. Nourish us at your banquet table, that with all who welcome your birth we may proclaim your peace,revealed in Jesus Christ, our Savior. Amen.

SHARING of the PEACE! 
The Peace of Christ be with you always! And also with you.

PRAYERS of INTERCESSION: The Lord is My Light
...Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

THE LORD’S PRAYER
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.
                                              
SENDING

BLESSING:
Almighty God,who sent the Holy Spirit to Mary, proclaimed joy through the angels,sent the shepherds with good news,and led the magi by a star, bless you this day ☩ through the Word made flesh. Amen.

DISMISSAL:
May God’s peace be with you ‘til we meet again (2x)  
‘Til we reach that distant shore, and we shed a tear no more,
May God give you strength to endure 
‘Til we meet again (2x)

L: Go in peace. Share the gift of Jesus.
C: Thanks be to God