OPENING HYMN ~ The Strife Is O’er, the Battle Done LSB#464
ref Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
1The strife is o’er, the battle done;
Now is the victor’s triumph won;
Now be the song of praise begun.
Alleluia!
2 The pow’rs of death have done their worst,
But Christ their legions hath dispersed.
Let shouts of holy joy outburst.
Alleluia!
3 The three sad days have quickly sped,
He rises glorious from the dead.
All glory to our risen Head!
Alleluia!
4 He broke the age-bound chains of hell;
The bars from heav’n’s high portals fell.
Let hymns of praise His triumph tell.
Alleluia!
5 Lord, by the stripes which wounded Thee,
From death’s dread sting Thy servants free
That we may live and sing to Thee.
Alleluia! Refrain
**INVOCATION (Matthew 28:19)
**CONFESSION/ABSOLUTION
Pastor: If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
People: But, if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
(silence for reflection and self examination)
Pastor: Let us then confess our sins to God our Father.
People: Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways to the glory of your most Holy Name. Amen.
Pastor: God in His mercy has given His Son to die for you and for His sake forgives you all your sins. As a called and ordained servant of the Word I therefore forgive you all your sins in the Name of the Father and of the (+) Son and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.
**KYRIE ELEISON: Lord, have mercy, Christ, have mercy, Lord, have mercy, have mercy, O Lord.
** GLORIA IN EXCELSIS (to be sung)
Pastor: Glory be to God on high
People: and on earth peace, good will toward men. We praise you, we bless you, we worship you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory. O Lord God, heav’nly King, God the Father Almighty. O Lord, the only begotten Son, Jesus Christ; O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy; who takes away the sin of the world, receive our prayer, who sits at the right hand of God the Father, have mercy. For you only are holy; you only are the Lord; you only, O Christ, with the Holy Spirit, are most high in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
**PRAYER FOR TODAY
Pastor: The Lord be with you.
People: And with your spirit.
Pastor: Almighty God, grant that we, who have celebrated the Lord’s resurrection, may by Your grace confess in our life and conversation that Jesus is Lord and God; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
SONG ~ “Then Came the Morning”
1 They all walked away, nothing to say
They’d just lost their dearest friend
All that He said, now He was dead
So this was the way it would end
The dreams they had dreamed were not what they’d seemed
Now that He was dead and gone
The garden, the jail, the hammer, the nail
How could a night be so long?
Then came the morning
Night turned into day
The stone was rolled away
Hope rose with the dawn
Then came the morning
Shadows vanished before the sun
Death had lost and life had won
For morning had come
2 The angel, the star, the kings from afar
The wedding, the water, the wine
Now it was done, they’d taken her Son
Wasted before His time
She knew it was true, she’d watched Him die too
She’d heard them call Him just a man
But deep in her heart she knew from the start
Somehow her Son would live again Refrain
THE EPISTLE 1 John 5:4-10
4For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
6This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7For there are three that testify: 8the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. 9If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. 10Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son.
**(Sung)Alleluia. Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of Eternal life. Alleluia.
**THE GOSPEL John 20:19-31
The Holy Gospel according to St. John, the twentieth chapter.
Glory to You, O Lord.
19On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” 22And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive the sins of anyone, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.”
24Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. 25So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.”
26Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” 28Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
30Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to You, O Christ.
SERMON HYMN LSB#763 When Peace, like a River
1 When peace, like a river, attendeth my way;
When sorrows, like sea billows, roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul. Refrain
ref It is well (It is well)
with my soul, (with my soul),
It is well, it is well with my soul.
2 Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate
And hath shed His own blood for my soul. Refrain
3 He lives—oh, the bliss of this glorious thought;
My sin, not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross, and I bear it no more.
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul! Refrain
4 And, Lord, haste the day when our faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll,
The trumpet shall sound and the Lord shall descend;
Even so it is well with my soul. Refrain
WHAT WE BELIEVE The Apostles Creed
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
THE MESSAGE “Peace” (John 20:19-31)
OFFERTORY (We worship the Lord with our offerings)
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with your free Spirit.
PRAYERS OF THE FAITHFUL
**THE LORD’S PRAYER & THE BENEDICTION