December 16, 2018
Holy Communion at 8:30 and 11am


Prayer of the Day
Stir up the wills of your faithful people, Lord God, and open our ears to the preaching of John, that, rejoicing in your salvation, we may bring forth the fruits of repentance; 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
Zephaniah 3:14-20
Isaiah 12:2-6
Philippians 4:4-7
Luke 3:7-18

Sermon 
"Playing with Fire"
Luke 3:7-18
Good news! The Messiah is coming. Good news! He will pick up the axe lying at the foot of the trees, and every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and burned. Good news! The Messiah is coming. Good news! He will baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire, and he will gather the wheat into his granary and burn the chaff with unquenchable fire. Good news! Good news? We may consider ourselves flame-resistant and untouched by the fires, because we live a good life, we hold the "correct" opinions, and we are bearing the better fruit in the world. But the truth is, there's a lot that the Messiah burns away in us, too. Our baptism into Christ means that flames lap at us, too. And yes, this is Good News! For this is a good fire, a holy fire, a fire that continually burns away our sin, our death, and even our graves. 

Hymns

In our prayers we remember Lutheran Volunteer Corps.

Education hour at 9:45am

Sunday School,  Pre-Confirmation and  Confirmation classes meet in their regular locations.

2018-19 Faith Formation Calendar

Adult Education

Religion Books of 2018
Elizabeth Palmer, Book Review Editor, 
The Christian Century

Elizabeth Palmer will talk about her work and the important books in religion published in the past year..

The Sunday morning Bible study group meets in the conference room.

The Grace Church Library is open and staffed on Sundays from 8:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Look for books related to Adult Ed topics as well as many other subjects. The library is also open for self-service during the week.