WELCOME! We extend a warm welcome to all who worship with us this morning, and a special
welcome to any who are visitors to our church. Visitors are asked to sign our guest book in the narthex
and introduce themselves to the pastor. May God bless you with His love and strengthen you in your
faith. Please return whenever the opportunity presents itself.
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First Sunday in Advent November 29, 2020
Liturgy: Divine Service-Setting Three (pages 184-202) Hymns: #331, #348, #622, #350
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O come, O come Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lowly exile here, until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!
O come, Thou Wisdom from on high, Who ord’rest all things mightily, To us the path of knowledge show, and teach us in her ways to go. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel!
P: Let us pray.
C: Stir up Your power, O Lord, and come, that by Your protection we may be rescued from the threatening perils of our sins and be saved by Your mighty deliverance; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
THE INTROIT
Ps. 25:1-3; antiphon: Zech. 9:9b, alt.
Pastor: Congregation: Pastor: Congregation: All:
Behold, your King is com- / ing to you; righteous and having sal- / vation.
To You, / O Lord, I lift / up my soul.
O my God, in You I trust; let me not be / put to shame; let not my enemies exult / over me.
Indeed, none who wait for You shall be / put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly / treacherous.
Glory be to the Father and / to the Son and to the Holy / Spirit;
as it was in the be- / ginning,
is now, and will be forever. / Amen.
Behold, your king is com- / ing to you; righteous and having sal- / vation.
LIGHTING THE ADVENT WREATH
P: The season of Advent is a time of repentance and prayer to make ready for the celebration of Christ’s coming at Bethlehem and His coming again at the end of the age. Week by week, as light gathers on our Advent wreath, we speak and sing words of hope.
P: The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
C: those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.
P: And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? C: My hope is in You. (Psalm 39:7)
THE OLD TESTAMENT READING Isaiah 64:1-9 (ESV)
Oh that You would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might quake at Your presence— 2as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil—to make Your name known to Your adversaries, and that the nations might tremble at Your presence! 3When You did awesome things that we did not look for, You came down, the mountains quaked at Your presence. 4From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides You, who acts for those who wait for Him. 5You meet him who joyfully works righteousness, those who remember You in Your ways. Behold, You were angry, and we sinned; in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved? 6We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. 7There is no one who calls upon Your name, who rouses himself to take hold of You; for You have hidden Your face from us, and have made us melt in the hand of our iniquities.
8But now, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are our potter; we are all the work of Your hand. 9Be not so terribly angry, O Lord, and remember not iniquity forever. Behold, please look, we are all Your people.
GRADUAL
All: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of / Zion.
Shout aloud, O daughter of Je- / rusalem.
Behold, your King is com- / ing to you;
Righteous and having sal- / vation.
Blessed is He who comes in the name / of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we / bless you.
THE EPISTLE 1 Corinthians 1:3-9 (ESV)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.4I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5that in every way you were enriched in Him in all speech and all knowledge—6even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you—7so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
THE HOLY GOSPEL Mark 11:1-10(ESV)
When they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of His disciples 2and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. 3If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” 4And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. 5And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. 7And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and He sat on it. 8And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. 9And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
* * ANNOUNCEMENTS * * *
ALTAR FLOWERS are placed to the glory of God.
RESERVATION FOR CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE—Please call the church at 412.486.5777 or put your name on the signup sheet, and how many people are coming, if you plan to attend Christmas Eve service at Bethel at 8:00pm.
GOOD BOOKS—If you need a good book to read, Bethel is starting a library in the side room of the Social Hall. Take a book, bring a book. DIRECTOR NEEDED—to be in charge of the Altar Guild. Duties include: organizing volunteers who set up and clean up communion, purchasing palms, Easter lilies and Poinsettias, communion supplies, filling candles, changing paraments, etc. If you feel you could serve the Lord in this capacity, please speak to Fred Heintz.
TRI-PARISH CONSTITUTION COMMITTEE—is scheduled for Thursday, December 10th at 7pm at St. John’s.
SEWING GROUP—will meet Friday, December 11th at 1:30pm.
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Acknowledgments: Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright © 2001 by Crossway (Isaiah 9:2)