Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost
Sunday, September 18, 2022

PRELUDE This is the Day of New Beginnings – Michael Burkhardt

GATHERING
The holy spirit calls us together as people of God.

*THANKSGIVING FOR BAPTISM
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Joined to Christ in the waters of baptism,
we are clothed with God’s mercy and forgiveness.
Let us give thanks for the gift of baptism.

We give you thanks, O God,
for in the beginning your Spirit moved over the waters
and by your Word you created the world,
calling forth life in which you took delight.

Through the waters of the flood you delivered Noah and his family.
Through the sea you led your people Israel from slavery into freedom.
At the river your Son was baptized by John and anointed with the Holy Spirit.
By water and your Word you claim us as daughters and sons,
making us heirs of your promise and servants of all.
We praise you for the gift of water that sustains life,
and above all we praise you for the gift of new life in Jesus Christ.
Shower us with your Spirit,
and renew our lives with your forgiveness, grace, and love.
To you be given honor and praise
through Jesus Christ our Lord
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, now and forever.
Amen.

*GATHERING SONG Let Justice Flow like Streams ELW 717

*GREETING
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
And also with you.

*CANTICLE OF PRAISE – THIS IS THE FEAST

*PRAYER OF THE DAY
Let us pray. God among us, we gather in the name of your Son to learn love for one another. Keep our feet from evil paths. Turn our minds to your wisdom and our hearts to the grace revealed in your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

WORD
God speaks to us in scripture, preaching, and song.

CHILDREN’S TIME – BLESSING OF THE BACKPACKERS

First Reading: Amos 8:4-7

4Hear this, you that trample on the needy,
and bring to ruin the poor of the land,
5saying, “When will the new moon be over
so that we may sell grain;
and the sabbath,
so that we may offer wheat for sale?
We will make the ephah small and the shekel great,
and practice deceit with false balances,
6buying the poor for silver
and the needy for a pair of sandals,
and selling the sweepings of the wheat.”

7The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
Surely I will never forget any of their deeds.

The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

Psalm: 113

1Hallelujah! Give praise, you servants of theLord;
praise the name of the Lord.
2Let the name of theLordbe blessed,
from this time forth forevermore.
3From the rising of the sun to its going down
let the name of the Lordbe praised.
4TheLordis high above all nations;
God’s glory above the heavens. R
5Who is like the Lordour God,
who sits enthroned on high,
6but stoopsto behold
the heavensand the earth?
7TheLordtakes up the weak out of the dust
and lifts up the poor from the ashes,
8enthroning themwith the rulers,
with the rulers of the people.
9TheLordmakes the woman of a childless house
to be a joyful mother of children. Hallelujah! R

Second Reading: 1 Timothy 2:1-7

The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

*GOSPEL ACCLAMATION

Gospel: Luke 16:1-13
The holy gospel according to Luke.
Glory to you, O Lord.

1Then Jesus said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was squandering his property.2So he summoned him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Give me an accounting of your management, because you cannot be my manager any longer.’3Then the manager said to himself, ‘What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.4I have decided what to do so that, when I am dismissed as manager, people may welcome me into their homes.’5So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’6He answered, ‘A hundred jugs of olive oil.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.’7Then he asked another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘A hundred containers of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill and make it eighty.’8And his master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.9And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.
10“Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much.11If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?12And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another, who will give you what is your own?13No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.”

The gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.

*HYMN OF THE DAY Guide My Feet

Sacrament of Holy Baptism

God, who is rich in mercy and love, gives us a new birth into a living hope through the sacrament of baptism. By water and the Word God delivers us from sin and death and raises us to new life in Jesus Christ. We are united with all the baptized in the one body of Christ, anointed with the gift of the Holy Spirit, and joined in God’s mission for the life of the world.

Sponsors Response: I present Jolie for Baptism.
Called by the Holy Spirit, trusting in the grace and love of God, do you desire to have Jolie baptized into Christ?
Parents Response: I do.
As you bring Jolie to receive the gift of baptism, you are entrusted with responsibilities:
to live with her among God’s faithful people,
bring her to the word of God and the holy supper,
teach her the Lord’s Prayer, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments,
place in her hands the holy scriptures,
and nurture her in faith and prayer,
so that Jolie may learn to trust God,
proclaim Christ through word and deed,
care for others and the world God made,
and work for justice and peace.
Do you promise to help Jolie grow in the Christian faith and life?
Response: I do.
Sponsors, do you promise to nurture Jolie in the Christian faith as you are empowered by God’s Spirit, and to help him live in the covenant of baptism and in communion with the church?
Response: I do.
People of God, do you promise to support Jolie and pray for her in her new life in Christ?
We do.
I ask you to profess your faith in Christ Jesus, reject sin, and confess the faith of the church. Do you renounce the devil and all the forces that defy God, the powers of this world that rebel against God, the ways of sin that draw you from God?
Parents and Sponsors Respond: I renounce them.

*Do you believe in God the Father? – All respond…
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

*Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God?
I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s 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 to the dead.*
On the third day he rose again;
he ascended into heaven,
he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.

*Do you believe in God the Holy Spirit?
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.

BAPTISM
Jolie, I baptize you in the name of the Father,and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us pray. We give you thanks, O God, that through water and the Holy Spirit you give your daughters and sons new birth, cleanse them from sin, and raise them to eternal life. Sustain Jolie with the gift of your Holy Spirit: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord, the spirit of joy in your presence, both now and forever. Amen.

Jolie, child of God, you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever. Amen.

WELCOME
Let your light so shine before others that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. Let us welcome the newly baptized.
We welcome you into the body of Christ and into the mission we share:
join us in giving thanks and praise to God and bearing God’s creative and redeeming word to all the world.

PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION
Response after each prayer: hear our prayer.

PEACE
The peace of Christ be with you always.
And also with you.

MEAL
God feeds us with the presence of Jesus Christ.

OFFERING PRAYER
Let us pray. God of all creation, all you have made is good, and your love endures forever. You bring forth bread from the earth and fruit from the vine. Nourish us with these gifts, that we might be for the world signs of your gracious presence in Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

GREAT THANKSGIVING

DIALOGUE
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.

PREFACE
It is indeed right, our duty and our joy,
that we should at all times and in all places
give thanks and praise to you, almighty and merciful God,
through our Savior Jesus Christ.
You call your people to cleanse their hearts
and prepare with joy for the paschal feast,
that, renewed in the gift of baptism,
we may come to the fullness of your grace.
And so, with all the choirs of angels,
with the church on earth and the hosts of heaven,
we praise your name and join their unending hymn:

HOLY, HOLY, HOLY 

THANKSGIVING AT THE TABLE
In the night in which he was betrayed,
our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks;
broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take and eat; this is my body, given for you.
Do this for the remembrance of me.

 Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave thanks,
and gave it for all to drink, saying:
This cup is the new covenant in my blood,
shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sin.
Do this for the remembrance of me

LORD’S PRAYER
Lord, remember us in your kingdom and teach us to pray.

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours,
now and forever. Amen.

INVITATION TO COMMUNION
Taste and see that the Lord is good.

COMMUNION SONG God, Whose Giving Knows No Ending (ELW 678)

COMMUNION SONG We Give Thee but Thine Own (ELW 686)

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Let us pray. God of abundance, with this bread of life and cup of salvation you have united us with Christ, making us one with all your people. Now send us forth in the power of your Spirit, that we may proclaim your redeeming love to the world and continue forever in the risen life of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

SENDING
God blesses us and sends us in mission to the world.

INSTALLATION OF COUNCIL MEMBERS AND SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHERS
The following people have been elected by the congregation to positions of leadership among us. We give thanks for their willingness to serve. In baptism we are welcomed into the body of Christ and sent to share in the mission of God; we rejoice now that these brothers and sisters will lead us in our common life and our mutual mission as a congregation.

Tom Campbell, president; Denise Cole, vice-president; John O’Meara, secretary; Tom Cassel, treasurer; Melissa Feeney, Heather Lerch, Charlie Lange, Peggy Marks, Karen Widen, Beth Eiler, Chris Cassel

You have been elected to positions of leadership and trust in this congregation. You are to see that the words and deeds of this household of faith bear witness to God, who gathers us into one, together with the whole church. You are to seek to involve all members of this congregation in worship, learning, witness, service, and support, so that the mission of Christ is carried out in this congregation, in the wider church, in this community, and in the whole world.

You are to be faithful in your specific area of serving, that the Spirit who empowers you may be glorified. You are to be examples of faith active in love, fostering peace and mutual understanding in this congregation.

I ask you, are you ready to accept and faithful to carry out the duties of the offices to which you have been elected? If so, answer “We will and we ask God to help us.”

We will and we ask God to help us.

I ask the congregation, will you support these, your elected leaders, and will you share in the mutual ministry that Christ has given to all who are baptized?

We will, and we ask God to help us.

I now declare you installed as officers and council members of this congregation. May God bless you and guide you.

BLESSING
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord’s face shine on you with grace and mercy.
The Lord look upon you with favor and give you peace.
Amen.

SENDING SONG “Let Streams of Living Justice” ELW 710

DISMISSAL
Go in peace. Christ is with you. Thanks be to God.

POSTLUDE “Let Streams of Living Justice”  arr. David Cherwien