Livestream at 8:30am
Bulletin for the service

Prayer of the Day 
Almighty God, you have knit your people together in one communion in the mystical body of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Grant us grace to follow your blessed saints in lives of faith and commitment, and to know the inexpressible joys you have prepared for those who love you, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Scripture readings
Revelation 7:9-17
Psalm 34:1-10, 22
1 John 3:1-3
Matthew 5:1-12

Sermon 
"Who Are These?"
Matthew 5:1-12; Revelation 7:9-17

Our first reading comes from the end of the story, the vision of the new creation revealed to John. John, seeing the saints gathered around the Lamb, is asked, “Who are these?” John doesn’t know, so he is told: “These are they who have come out of the great ordeal.” An ordeal is a painful and protracted experience, which seems an apt description for this pandemic. But note that these saints are not the ones who avoided the ordeal; they were brought through it. To follow Christ is not to avoid suffering; it is to be faithful in all circumstances, clinging to Christ and seeking to ease the ordeals of others. We give thanks today for the saints who have gone before us and are now at rest. The ordeal over, theirs is the Kingdom of God.

Hymns

 In our prayers we remember Valparaiso University.