Sunday’s Liturgy
September 14, 2025
Listen throughout the week, so you’re ready to sing along on Sunday!
[ Gathering ]
Call to Worship
Psalm 100
[One:] Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
Serve the LORD with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!
[All:] Know that the LORD, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
For the LORD is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.
Confession of Sin
Merciful God,
we feel all too deeply how our world is broken.
Day by day, the deep shadows loom over us,
in rumor of war and news of violence,
in pain of sickness and sting of loss,
in poverty, injustice, and want.
We groan with all creation,
believing in our bones
that these things should not be so.
Our souls ache with the memory of Eden,
homesick for that far country we have never known.
And yet these shadows are not only
outside us, but also in our very hearts.
We ourselves are sick with sin,
and in our rebellion we add to the
breaking of your world.
We confess, merciful God:
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 are truly sorry, and we humbly repent.
Let us find in our worthy Savior
light, forgiveness, and healing,
that we may not further add to the world’s breaking,
but join, by your grace, in the work of its renewal.
For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ,
have mercy on us and forgive us,
that we may delight in your will
and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your name.
Amen.
Assurance of Pardon
Hear, O child, the promise of the Lord:
On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples
a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine,
of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.
And he will swallow up on this mountain
the covering that is cast over all peoples,
the veil that is spread over all nations.
He will swallow up death forever;
and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces,
and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the LORD has spoken.
It will be said on that day,
“Behold, this is our God;
we have waited for him, that he might save us.
This is the LORD; we have waited for him;
let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”
(Isaiah 25:6-9)
This is the good news of what Jesus has done.
He is faithful and is bringing to pass
all that God has promised.
He has forgiven us by his blood
and heals us with us own wounds,
so that the curse of death and all its hurts
have been and will be swallowed up forever.
So take heart, O child, in the love of your God!
Let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation!
Prayer of Thanksgiving
Greetings of Peace
[CityKids are dismissed.]
[ Word ]
Prayer for Illumination
Reading of Scripture
Luke 8:40-56
Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him. And there came a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue. And falling at Jesus’ feet, he implored him to come to his house, for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying.
As Jesus went, the people pressed around him. And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone. She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. And Jesus said, “Who was it that touched me?” When all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!” But Jesus said, “Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me.” And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed. And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”
While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler’s house came and said, “Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher any more.” But Jesus on hearing this answered him, “Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.” And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child. And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, “Do not weep, for she is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. But taking her by the hand he called, saying, “Child, arise.” And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given her to eat. And her parents were amazed, but he charged them to tell no one what had happened.
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Sermon
Concluding Prayer
[ Table ]
Invitation to Communion
Prayer of Consecration
Distribution of Elements
[We gather in small groups around tables throughout the room and pray together as we receive the bread and cup.]
[ Sending ]