First Service
EIGHTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
Hope in the Harvest
July 19, 2026
AS WE GATHER
If you have ever done a load of laundry, then you know what it feels like to come up one sock short. It is almost like some troublemaker climbed into the dryer and left only one lonesome sock behind. Our laundry is incomplete. We don’t have everything we are supposed to have, everything we started with. Our frustration grows. If we truly took stock of our lives, we would evaluate ourselves as missing more than a sock or two. Sabotaged by the enemy and suffering from our own failures, we feel frustrated and incomplete. But perfection is coming. God’s perfect Word is here to speak your forgiveness. His perfect heart pursues lost souls. And His perfect plan includes His return to make all things right.
+ PREPARATION +
HYMN The Lord My God Be Praised LSB 794 vs 1-4
The Lord my God be praised My light my life from heaven My maker who to me Has soul and body given
My Father who will shield And keep me day by day And make each moment yield New blessings on my way
The Lord my God be praised My trust my life from heaven The Father’s own dear Son Whose life for me was given
Who for my sin atoned With His most precious blood And gives to me by faith The highest heav’nly good
The Lord my God be praised My hope my life from heaven The Spirit whom the Son In love to me has given
His grace revives my heart And gives my spirit pow’r Help comfort and support In sorrow’s gloomy hour
The Lord my God be praised My God the ever living To whom the heav’nly host Their laud and praise are giving
The Lord my God be praised In whose great name I boast God Father God the Son And God the Holy Ghost
INVOCATION
Pastor: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.
OPENING SENTENCES Psalm 31:24; Hebrews 10:23; Psalm 39:7
Pastor: Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
People: all you who wait for the Lord!
Pastor: Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering,
People: for He who promised is faithful.
Pastor: And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?
People: My hope is in You.
CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION Psalm 130:5
Pastor: Let us confess to the Lord our sins and trust in His salvation.
People: “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I hope.”
Pastor: Almighty God, You spoke a perfect world into being, yet now Your creation bears the stains and scars of our failure.
People: “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I hope.”
Pastor: We bear responsibility for the suffering around us, filling the world with evil and failing to do the good we ought.
People: “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I hope.”
Pastor: Our hearts are crushed beneath the burden of our sin and with longing for the world to be made right.
People: “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I hope.”
Pastor: Forgive us, O God, for You are faithful and just and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
People: “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I hope.”
Pastor: Your hope is met by the redemption and renewal of our God found in His Son, Jesus Christ, who was given to die for you, and for whose sake God forgives you all your sins. As a called and ordained servant of Christ and by His authority, I therefore forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.
+ WORD +
HYMN OF PRAISE My Hope is Built on Nothing Less TLH 575
My hope is built on nothing less Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness
No merit of my own I claim But wholly lean on Jesus’ name
On Christ the solid rock I stand All other ground is sinking sand
When darkness veils His lovely face I rest on His unchanging grace
In ev’ry high and stormy gale My anchor holds within the veil
On Christ the solid rock I stand All other ground is sinking sand
His oath His covenant and blood Support me in the raging flood
When ev’ry earthly prop give way He then is all my hope and stay
On Christ the solid rock I stand All other ground is sinking sand
When He shall come with trumpet sound Oh may I then in Him be found
Clothed in His righteousness alone Redeemed to stand before His throne
On Christ the solid rock I stand All other ground is sinking sand
PRAYER OF THE DAY
Pastor: Let us pray. O God, so rule and govern our hearts and minds by Your Holy Spirit that, ever mindful of Your final judgment, we may be stirred up to holiness of living here and dwell with You in perfect joy hereafter; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
People: Amen.
OLD TESTAMENT READING Isaiah 44:6–8 (The unrivaled Lord reinforces His power, peace, and purpose for His people.)
6 Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god. 7 Who is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and set it before me, since I appointed an ancient people. Let them declare what is to come, and what will happen. 8 Fear not, nor be afraid; have I not told you from of old and declared it? And you are my witnesses! Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock; I know not any.”
EPISTLE Romans 8:18–27 (Creation groans in hope for the glory yet to be revealed.)
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. 26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
HOLY GOSPEL Matthew 13:24–30, 36–43 (Jesus shares and interprets His story of harvest and final judgment.)
24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
CHILDREN’S MESSAGE
HYMN Almighty God Your Word is Cast LSB 577 vs 1-4
Almighty God Your Word is cast Like seed into the ground
Now let the dew of heav’n descend And righteous fruits abound
Let not the sly satanic foe This holy seed remove
But give it root in ev’ry heart To bring forth fruits of love
Let not the world’s deceitful cares The rising plant destroy
But let it yield a hundred fold The fruits of peace and joy
So when the precious seed is sown Life giving grace bestow
That all whose souls the truth receive It’s saving pow’r may know
SERMON
NICENE CREED
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made: who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. And the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. And he will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets. And I believe one holy Christian and apostolic Church, I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
GREETING/ANNOUNCEMENTS
OFFERING “I’m So Blessed”
Trouble knocking at my door today I ain’t gonna let it in
Worry wanna steal my joy away But I ain’t gonna let it win
On my best day I’m a child of God On my worst day I’m a child of God
Oh everyday is a good day And You’re the reason why
I’m so blessed I’m so blessed Got this heartbeat in my chest
No it doesn’t matter about the rest If I got you Lord I’m so blessed
When I count the problems that I see Hope looks all but gone
When I count the ways You’re good to me You got me counting all day long
I’m so blessed I’m so blessed Got this heartbeat in my chest
No it doesn’t matter about the rest If I got you Lord I’m so blessed
I’m so blessed I’m so blessed Got this heartbeat in my chest
No it doesn’t matter about the rest If I got you Lord I’m so blessed
On my best day I’m a child of God On my worst day I’m a child of God
Oh everyday is a good day And You’re the reason why
On my best day I’m a child of God On my worst day I’m a child of God
Oh everyday is a good day And You’re the reason why
I’m so blessed I’m so blessed Got this heartbeat in my chest
No it doesn’t matter about the rest
If I got you Lord I’m so blessed I’m so blessed I’m so blessed
Got this heartbeat in my chest No it doesn’t matter about the rest
If I got you Lord I’m so blessed
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
Pastor: O Holy Spirit, where our words fall short, You intercede for Your church. Even so, let us gather our hearts, praying for the people of God around the world and for all who suffer in this and every place:
For believers who face difficulty and danger, especially because of their faith, that their lives might be protected and their souls preserved, let us pray to the Lord:
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For Your church around the world, fractured by ignorance, error, and pride, that the Bride of Christ might be united in truth and active in love, let us pray to the Lord:
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For all marriages, purposed as an illustration of Christ’s sacrifice and faithfulness, that couples would be safeguarded from temptation and their love increased despite distance or difficulty, let us pray to the Lord:
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For those in the grips of anxiety or depression, slaves to debt or poverty, or suffering from loss or loneliness, that the fullness of Christ would meet all their needs, let us pray to the Lord:
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: For all who suffer physically, especially those among us: [name particular prayers]; that healing would find them and their hope in Christ would never waver, let us pray to the Lord:
People: Lord, have mercy.
Pastor: O Holy Spirit, we trust You to perfect the prayers we have spoken and our unspoken prayers too deep for words. Search our hearts, assure us of Your constant presence, and remind us that God’s gracious will toward His saints shall be done in Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Father, one God, now and forever.
People: Amen.