First Service
FOURTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
Do Not Be Afraid
June 21, 2026
AS WE GATHER
Polls tell us that many of us live in fear and struggle with depression. Jesus calls us not to be afraid—not because we have no enemies but because He is stronger than them all. God knows the score—from every bird that falls from the sky to every hair on our head. He has invested His love and mercy in us in Christ and will not turn away from us. This promise is sure. Because of this, we can surrender our fears of being known as His children. Everyone who confesses Him on earth, Christ will confess him before His Father in heaven. From this promise comes the strength to live the new life given to us in our Baptism and to make known what Christ has done by His death and resurrection—for us and for all the world. We are called to judge not by the times but by the promises of God. Neither will He disappoint us nor will He forsake us.
+ PREPARATION +
HYMN How Firm A Foundation TLH 427 vs 1-3 & 7
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He hath said Who unto the Savior for refuge have fled?
In every condition, -- in sickness, in health, In poverty's vale, or abounding in wealth,
At home and abroad, on the land, on the sea, --The Lord, the Almighty, thy strength e'er shall be.
"Fear not, I am with thee, oh, be not dismayed, For I am thy God and will still give thee aid;
I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand, Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand.
"The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose I will not, I will not, desert to his foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake, I'll never, no never, no never, forsake!"
INVOCATION
Pastor: In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
People: Amen.
CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION Psalm 25:7, 18
Pastor: Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to Your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of Your goodness, O Lord!
People: Consider my affliction and my trouble, and forgive all my sins.
Pastor: Holy and gracious God,
People: I confess that I have sinned against You this day. Some of my sin I know—the thoughts and words and deeds of which I am ashamed—but some is known only to You. In the name of Jesus Christ I ask forgiveness. Deliver according to Your mercy and grant peace to my heart so that I may serve You with all my mind, body, and soul.
Pastor: By the mercy of God we are redeemed by Jesus Christ, and in Him we are forgiven. 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.
Pastor: He who began this good work within you will bring it to completion on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. The peace of the Lord be with you.
People: And also with you. Amen.
+ WORD +
HYMN OF PRAISE Children of the Heavenly Father CH 719
Children of the heav’nly Father safely in His bosom gather.
Nestling bird nor star in heaven such a refuge e’er was given.
God His own doth tend and nourish, in His holy courts they flourish.
From all evil things He spares them, in His mighty arms He bears them.
Neither life nor death shall ever from the Lord His children sever.
Unto them His grace He showeth, and their sorrows all he knoweth.
Tho’ he giveth or He taketh, God His children ne’er foresaketh.
His the loving purpose solely to preserve them pure and holy.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
Pastor: Let us pray. O God, because Your abiding presence always goes with us, keep us aware of Your daily mercies that we may live secure and content in Your eternal love; 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 Jeremiah 20:7–13 (He rescues the life of the needy.)
7 O Lord, you have deceived me, and I was deceived; you are stronger than I, and you have prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all the day; everyone mocks me. 8 For whenever I speak, I cry out, I shout, “Violence and destruction!” For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long. 9 If I say, “I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,” there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot. 10 For I hear many whispering. Terror is on every side! “Denounce him! Let us denounce him!” say all my close friends, watching for my fall. “Perhaps he will be deceived; then we can overcome him and take our revenge on him.” 11 But the Lord is with me as a dread warrior; therefore my persecutors will stumble; they will not overcome me.
They will be greatly shamed, for they will not succeed. Their eternal dishonor will never be forgotten. 12 O Lord of hosts, who tests the righteous, who sees the heart and the mind, let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you have I committed my cause. 13 Sing to the Lord; praise the Lord! For he has delivered the life of the needy from the hand of evildoers.
EPISTLE Romans 6:12–23 (“The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ.”)
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. 13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. 14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. 15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. 20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
HOLY GOSPEL Matthew 10:5a, 21–33 (Do not be afraid.)
5 These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them,
21 Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, 22 and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 23 When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes. 24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household. 26 “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.
CHILDREN’S MESSAGE
HYMN Lift High the Cross CH 450 vs 1-3 & 5
Refrain: Lift high the cross; the love of Christ proclaim,
Till all the world adore His sacred name.
Come Christians, follow where our Savior trod,
Our King victorious, Christ, the Son of God. (Refrain)
Led on their way by this triumphant sign,
The hosts of God in conqu’ring ranks combine. (Refrain)
O Lord, once lifted on this glorious tree,
As Thou hast promised, draw men unto Thee. (Refrain)
For Thy blest cross which doth for all atone,
Creations’ praises rise before Thy throne. (Refrain)
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
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
Pastor: Lord of all power and might, deliver Your people from their fears and grant us a clean heart that we may plead our cause before You in confidence of Your mercy.
Lord God, unloose the tongues of Your people that we boldly confess Christ here on earth and be confessed by Him before the Father in heaven. Prosper the work of Your church and defend her against every evil threat. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord God, keep those whom You have redeemed from falling back into the paths of sin and evil, and raise us up to serve You in holiness and righteousness all our days. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord God, prevent the freedom purchased for us by the suffering and death of Christ from excusing our cause to serve You as the people of Your promise, doing the good Your Word requires, and avoiding the evil You forbid. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord God, grant freedom from fear and sorrow to the sick and those who suffer, that trusting in Your mercy, they may know Your healing power and strength and be kept by Your power to everlasting life. [Hear us especially for . . .] Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord, God of power and might, bring an end to the warring of the nations and the violence that makes anxious the hearts of all. Provide for good, wise, and careful leaders who will honor the trust placed in them and allow us to live holy, upright, and peaceful lives. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord God, send Your love into the homes of Your people that they be places of forgiveness and love. Enable all husbands and wives to fulfill the holy vows in which they were united as one, and bless the children given to their care. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord God, You well supply us with the fruits of the harvest and the bounty of this good earth. Give us generous hearts that we may well-supply the poor and bring into Your storehouse the tithes and offerings of a grateful heart. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord God, You have set Your Table before us and provide to us the true bread of heaven and cup of salvation in the body and blood of Your Son. Grant that what we may receive with our lips we may keep in holy hearts of faith and bear its good fruits in our lives. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: Lord God, You order our days in Your peace and sustain us to the day when all things shall have their perfect fulfillment. We give You thanks for the faithful who have died and now live in Your nearer presence. Bring us at last with them into everlasting life, and wipe away the tears of those who mourn. Lord, in Your mercy,
People: hear our prayer.
Pastor: All these things, O Lord, and whatever else we need, we trust to Your gracious provision, begging Your mercy for the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.
People: Amen.