Worship and Devotions

Welcome visitors and old friends. Welcome regardless of belief, ethnic background, sexual orientation, gender, socio-economic status, marital status, age, abilities, or life situation. Welcome believers and doubters as well as doubting believers. Welcome to share the fullness of Christ's love for the world!

(Adapted from The welcome message from the Thomas Community in Finland. "Celebrating milestone moments" by Rev. Jukka Joensuu. Canada Lutheran January/February 2024 Vol. 39 No. 1; chorus of ELW 523)

Twenty-Second Sunday After Pentecost

Sunday, November 2, 2025

We worship on the first day of the week because Jesus was raised on that day. Every Sunday is a little Easter. This Sunday feels more like Easter than many as the appointed texts celebrate the reality of the resurrection. Live it up this Lord’s Day. Our God is the God of the living.

Music

How Small Our Span Of Life

How Small Our Span of Life - ELW 636

Prayer of the Day

O God, our eternal redeemer, by the presence of your Spirit you renew and direct our hearts. Keep always in our mind the end of all things and the day of judgment. Inspire us for a holy life here, and bring us to the joy of the resurrection, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

Music

I Know That My Redeemer Lives

I Know That My Redeemer Lives! ELW#619

Readings

Job 19:23-27a; Psalm 17:1-9; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17

Semi-continuous - Haggai 1:15b-2:9; Psalm 98

Gospel - Luke 20:27-38

Glory to you, O Lord.

Some Sadducees, who do not believe in the resurrection of the dead, try to trap Jesus. They formulate the convoluted case of a serial widow who marries a succession of seven brothers. Jesus responds by teaching about God to whom all are alive and in whom all relationships are fulfilled.

Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to [Jesus] and asked him a question: “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married a woman and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.” Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed, they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead but of the living, for to him all of them are alive.”

Praise to you, O Christ.

Music

Jesus Lives, My Sure Defense

Jesus Lives, My Sure Defense - ELW 621

Sermon

https://youtu.be/zEWXUd9oL_Y

Prayers of Intercession

Gathered with one voice, we offer our prayers for the church, the world, and all who are in need.

A brief silence.

God of life, we give thanks for the fruits and grains of harvest, for rivers and streams, for all that is made of rock and iron. Renew the earth’s natural resources and the lands from which they come. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

God of justice, we give thanks for the service of our veterans and pray for those needing support for wounds of any kind. We remember those who have died in war and give us a renewed commitment to work for peace. Bring an end to the civil war in Sudan that is escalating. Help Israel and Hamas, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Cambodia and Thailand to keep the ceasefires and use this time to listen to each other and bring about peaceful resolution of their conflicts. Strengthen those charged with the governance and protection of vulnerable populations. Help us bring an end to war throughout the world. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

God who leads us to belief and truth, we give you thanks that you are always and already here. Nurture and support those who are unsteady in mind, unsafe in spirt, unwell in body or mourning the loss of loved ones, especially the families of the more than 1,376 people who have died from toxic drug overdoses in B.C. this year; the families of all murdered and missing Indigenous persons; the more than 218 homeless here in the Comox Valley; the more than 600 homeless in Nanaimo; and others whom we name in our heart. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

God who gathers us together, we give thanks for our pastors and deacons, teachers and musicians, administrators, and building caretakers. May they find joy in leadership as we grow in faith together. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

Here other intercessions may be offered.

God of the saints, we give thanks for all who have died in faith. Uplift us as we honor their memory and await your coming in glory. Hear us, O God. Your mercy is great.

We offer these and all our prayers to you, O God, trusting in your grace and unyielding love, through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Amen.

Music

Neither Death Nor Life

Neither Death nor Life - ELW 622

Soon And Very Soon

Andrae Crouch *Soon And Very Soon* w/Lyrics - YouTube