Announcements

St. John's Lutheran Church

109 Maple St. Burt, Iowa|Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Pastor: Rev. Thomas Cowell                

Secretary: Rosann Shipler

Pastor's Cell: 319-464-5548                

Church Office: 515-924-3344  stjohnsburt.org

Pastor's Email: pastor@stjohnsburt.org 

Church Email: churchoffice@stjohnsburt.org

 

THE TWELFTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

August 23, 2020

Almighty God, whom to know is everlasting life, grant us to know Your Son, Jesus, to be the way, the truth, and the life that we may boldly confess Him to be the Christ and steadfastly walk in the way that leads to life eternal; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. 

 

THIS WEEK AT ST. JOHN'S Today, August 23, 2020    9:00 a.m.    Divine Service (Pentecost 12) (C)   Sunday, August 30, 2020    9:00 a.m.    Divine Service (Pentecost 13) (C)

THIS WEEK IN THE CHURCH YEAR  August 24     Feast of St. Bartholomew, Apostle    August 27     Commemoration of Monica, Faithful Mother  August 28     Commemoration of Augustine of Hippo, Doctor       of the Church  August 29     Feast of The Martyrdom of St. John the Baptist

 

ST. JOHN'S NEWS

 

Organist Today:  Marcia Hanna  

Elder for August: Boyd Shipler

 

Thank You so much for your generous Scholarship! I am truly blessed to Witness God using His people to care for others. Thank you for answering God's call to care for me and my family. I am reminded that God is the creator and provider of all things. It is through Him that we are able to do anything good. Soli Deo Gloria! Nick Palmer and Family

 

Parish Messenger Articles are due to Linda Kerkove today, August 23 for the September/October edition.

 

St. John's Parent-Teacher Meeting - All parents, students, and teachers will have a meeting in the sanctuary after church on Sunday, August 30th to discuss the upcoming year of Christian education at St. John's.  If you can't attend this meeting, please let Pastor know and he can schedule an individual meeting at a time that works for you. 

 

Holy Communion available - If you are not comfortable coming to the Sunday service but would still like to receive Holy Communion, you are welcome to participate in a Divine Service in the sanctuary at St. John's during the week by appointment.  Bread and wine will be laid out before your arrival and Pastor can maintain plenty of distance during the service.  If you are not able to come to the sanctuary, we can arrange a safe way for you to receive the Lord's Supper at home.  Feel free to call Pastor Cowell on his cell phone at 319-464-5548 to set up a time to meet.  

 

St. John's Live-streamed Service - St. John's is now live-streaming our Sunday Divine Service on our YouTube channel: "St. John's Burt." These services will be archived for you to view on YouTube later as well. 

 

Sunday School and Adult Bible Study Returns! - Sunday school and adult Bible study will resume Sunday, September 13th at 8:00 a.m.  All are welcome to join our Sunday school students in the church basement at 8:00 as we bless each classroom for another year of Christian instruction. 

 

Adult Bible Study on the Book of Matthew - Beginning September 13th the adult Bible study will begin a verse-by-verse study of the Gospel of Matthew.  During the study we will be utilizing a journal version of the Book of Matthew to help us note key details and moments in the text along the way.  Each attendee will receive a book on the first Sunday they join the study.  Tables are spread out in the basement as a social distancing measure and you are welcome to wear a mask if you choose to do so. 

 

Midweek Christian Instruction for All Ages - The education committee has decided to postpone VBS until next year.  There is still, however, an opportunity for church members of all ages to enjoy each other's company outside of Sunday morning!  This year we are encouraging parents and other adults to sit in with the kids during their Wednesday evening instruction.  The main purpose of this is to encourage our children with our good example and to share our wisdom and experience with them as fellow Christians.  Therefore, this is your open invitation to join us on Wednesday evenings in the church basement for any one, several, or all lessons!  A class schedule along with an explanation of all of the changes to our midweek program will be published in the September Parish Messenger so that you can take note of any lessons you would be especially interested in attending. 

 

New Weekly Announcements Email - St. John's has started emailing our weekly announcements through Flocknote.  If you would like to receive these weekly announcements in a computer or smartphone-friendly format, contact the church office and we can add you to the list.  You can also contact the church office to update any of your Flocknote preferences. 

SYNOD, DISTRICT, & PARTNERSHIP NEWS

 

Trinity, Algona Schedule - As Trinity, Algona opens their worship in their church building note that they will continue their livestreamed service and other online resources in the coming months. You can find all these resources from Trinity at: trinityalgona.org/corona.  

 

Camp Okoboji has cancelled summer programs, but is still renting out the Family Ministry Cabins. See campokoboji.org for more information. 

Building Healthy Families: A research project conducted with 80 college age students in the Midwest found that most of them reported having an important relationship with grandparents or significant elders that influenced their values, goals, and life choices and gave them a sense of self, roots, and tradition. Grandparents and older members of our church family, do you know how important you are? Make sure the young adults in your family and congregation who are going off to college continue to hear from you! Lutheran Family Service - www.LutheranFamilyService.org

LECTIONARY SUMMARY (Proper 16)

Old Testament: Isaiah 51:1-6

The Lord reminds us that this heaven and earth will pass away, but His salvation and righteousness will continue forever. 

 

Epistle: Romans 11:33-12:8

St. Paul urges us to not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God.

 

Gospel: Matthew 16:13-20

St. Peter confesses Jesus to be the Christ, the Son of the living God. 

 

LCMS MEMORY VERSE CHALLENGE

But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion,' says my soul, 'therefore I will hope in him.' - Lamentations 3:21-24

 

LESSONS ON THE LITURGY 

Simon Peter

It's common today for people to have a first, middle, and last name and maybe even a nickname. People in the ancient world often had several names as well. In today's Gospel lesson Jesus refers to the Apostle Peter as both Simon Bar-Jonah and Peter. Simon is Peter's given name - what we would call his first name. Bar-Jonah is in a sense his last name.  Bar-Jonah means son of Jonah (think of the word bar mitzvah: son of righteousness, which is a ceremony that marks the transition of a Jewish boy into manhood). Peter is the nickname Jesus gives to Simon.  Peter is Greek for rock. Jesus also calls Peter Cephas in John's Gospel, which is Aramaic for rock.  Jesus announces that both Simon the man as well as Simon's right confession of Him is a rock on which Jesus builds His Church, against which the gates of hell will never prevail. 

 

FROM THE BOOK OF CONCORD

Large Catechism, Ten Commandments, paragraphs 1-4

First Commandment: You shall have no other gods.

     What this means: You shall have Me alone as your God. What is the meaning of this, and how is it to be understood? What does it mean to have a god? Or, what is God? Answer: A god means that from which we are to expect all good and in which we are to take refuge in all distress. So, to have a God is nothing other than trusting and believing Him with the heart. Confidence and faith of the heart alone make both God and an idol. If your faith and trust is right, then your god is also true. On the other hand, if your trust is false and wrong, then you do not have the true God. For these two belong together, faith and God ["Whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him." Hebrews 11:6]. Whatever you set your heart on and put your trust in is truly your god.

     The purpose of this commandment is to require true faith and trust of the heart, which settles upon the only true God and clings to Him alone. It is like saying, "See to it that you let Me alone be your God, and never seek another." In other words, "Whatever you lack of good things, expect it from Me. Look to Me for it. And whenever you suffer misfortune and distress, crawl and cling to Me. I, yes, I, will give you enough and help you out of every need. Only do not let your heart cleave to or rest on any other."