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 TWENTY-THIRD SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

November 8, 2020

 

Lord God, heavenly Father, send forth Your Son to lead home His bride, the Church, that with all the company of the redeemed we may finally enter into His eternal wedding feast; 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, November 8, 2020   8:00 a.m.    Sunday School/Adult Class   9:00 a.m.    Divine Service - (Pentecost 23) (C)    Wednesday, November 11, 2020   3:00 p.m.    Spoken Divine Service (C)   6:00 p.m.    Christian Catechesis   Sunday, November 15, 2020    8:00 a.m.    Sunday School/Adult Class    9:00 a.m.    Divine Service (Pentecost 24)  (C)

THIS WEEK IN THE CHURCH YEAR   November 8, 2020     Commemoration of Johann von Staupitz,         Luther's Father Confessor   November 9, 2020     Commemoration of Martin Chemnitz, Pastor         and Confessor   November 11, 2020     Commemoration of Martin of Tours, Pastor   November 14, 2020     Commemoration of Justinian, Christian         Ruler and Confessor of Christ

 

ST. JOHN’S NEWS

 

Organist Today:        Marcia Hanna ~ Elder for November:  Jeff Schujter

 

Food Pantry Monetary Donations - A special offering is being taken today and next Sunday for the Kossuth County Food Pantry. You may place your donation in the designated plate in the back.

 

Parish Messenger - The November-December Parish Messengers are in your church mailbox. 

 

Lutherans Engage the World Online - The Lutherans Engage the World magazine has moved to a completely digital format.  You can view the current issue at: engage.lcms.org. Of special interest in this issue is an article on the involvement of LCMS Christians with the derecho clean-up in eastern Iowa. If you would like a print copy of this article or the entire magazine we would be happy to print a copy for you. 

 

New “Socially Distant” Divine Service Available - Our midweek spoken Divine Service continues every Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. at St. John’s.  Feel free to attend any Wednesday, there will be plenty of room for you to sit at a distance from others.  If you need to receive the Lord’s Supper at home or on a different day, Pastor Cowell is always happy to schedule a visit.  You can call Pastor Cowell on his cell phone at 319-464-5548.

 

Adult Bible Study on the Book of Matthew - Adult Bible Class is studying a verse-by-verse study of the Gospel of Matthew.  You are welcome to join us at any time! 

 

Midweek Christian Instruction for All Ages - All members of the congregation are invited to join us Wednesdays at 6:00 p.m. for our Midweek Christian Catechesis.  Next Wednesday’s lesson we will be talking about the Church Year and its benefits to our faith. 

 

Shopping through Amazon Smile - Did you know that Amazon will donate a portion of all of your online purchases to St. John’s if you shop through Amazon Smile?  All you have to do is choose St. John’s as your charitable organization by clicking this link: smile.amazon.com/ch/42-0950037 or by clicking on the Amazon Smile button on the stjohnsburt.org homepage. Then, every time you shop on Amazon do not go to amazon.com; instead go to smile.amazon.com to do your online shopping.  Everything at smile.amazon.com is exactly the same, except that you will now be donating 0.5% of eligible purchases to St. John’s!  0.5% doesn’t sound like a lot, but in four years Amazon Smile has donated $957 to St. John’s, so your donations do add up to a significant amount!  Now would be a great time to get started with Amazon Smile as the Christmas shopping season begins.  If you need any help getting started feel free to contact Pam Reimers or Pastor Cowell and they can help you through the process. 

 

St. John’s Live-streamed Service - The easiest way to access our service livestreams and recordings is to click on the links posted on the homepage of stjohnsburt.org. 

 

TLC Quilts Available - Don’t forget that quilts made by the Trinity Lutheran Church Quilters are always available on the “giving pew” by the east door!

 

SYNOD, DISTRICT, & PARTNERSHIP NEWS

 

Trinity, Algona Schedule - Here is the weekly line-up of online resources from Trinity, Algona, which you can access at trinityalgona.org/corona or the Trinity YouTube and Facebook pages either live or any time after as a recording:

 

Sun. 8:00am/9:15am: Worship/Bible Study

Every Weekday: Psalm Devotion (recorded)

 

Mon. 8:00pm: Evening Prayer

Wed. 10:00am: “Ask the Pastors”

Thurs. 9:00am: Morning Prayer

 

Building Healthy Families: Are you feeling “dismayed” today? The dictionary’s definition of “dismay” is to lose courage or resolution; a feeling of unhappiness or disappointment. Scripture is full of examples of people who were “dismayed” because of difficult conditions or life situations. In Hebrew, the word means “prostrate” or to “break down”. The state of our world may have you feeling disappointed or broken down. But the message God gave to His dismayed people throughout Scripture is the same message He has for you today: Be not dismayed! You are not alone, not defeated, and not without hope! Your Father is with you, and He is the ruler of all things on earth and in heaven. He is in charge, even when things feel out of control. Be confident in His promise, for He is faithful. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9 Lutheran Family Service - www.LutheranFamilyService.org

 

COMMUNITY NEWS

 

Soup Fundraiser - The Fenton EMS  is hosting a Chili or Chicken Noodle Soup Luncheon today at the formerly Henry-Olsen Funeral Home, Fenton. This will be a Drive Up/Carry Out with some limited indoor seating.  A Free will Donation

 

Hunting with Heroes celebrates Veterans Day on November 11 with Gifts and Full Thanksgiving Meal Kits for all Vets and Widows of Vets!   A Drive thru Thanksgiving Meal  will be handed out from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Main Street in Lakota.  Each Vet or Widow of Vet will receive a full meal to be cooked at home courtesy of Christensen Farms and HyVee.

 

LECTIONARY SUMMARY (Proper 27)

Old Testament: Amos 5:18-24

Amos prophesies that the Day of the Lord will be darkness and gloom for those who do not trust in the Lord. 

 

Epistle: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

On the Last Day the dead in Christ will rise first, then we who are alive will be gathered together with them to be with the Lord. 

 

Gospel: Matthew 25:1-13

Jesus tells the Parable of the Ten Virgins to teach us to always be prepared for His final return.

 

FROM THE CHURCH FATHERS

“The whole story [of the Parable of the Ten Virgins] is about the great day of the Lord, when those things concealed from the human mind will be revealed through our understanding of divine judgement. Then the faith true to the Lord’s coming will win the just reward for unwavering hope.” - Hilary of Poitiers, On Matthew, 27.3, qtd in ACCS, Matthew 14-28, 215.

 

LESSONS ON THE LITURGY 

Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

The Christian life consists of both urgently preparing for the return of Christ and resting in the preparations Christ has made for us. Christ urges us to stay awake in repentance and faith and to remain vigilant against sin and temptation which draws us away from Him.  Yet we can also rest in peace each night, knowing that our faith rests in Him who accomplished our salvation for us on the cross.  The antiphon accompanying the Nunc Dimittis in the order of Compline on page 258 of the Lutheran Service Book is an excellent prayer that summarizes our Christian life of preparation and faith in Christ’s preparations for us. Here is that antiphon: Guide us waking, O Lord, / and guard us sleeping / that awake we may watch with Christ / and asleep we may rest in peace.

 

FROM THE BOOK OF CONCORD

Formula of Concord, Epitome, Article I: Original Sin, paragraphs 5-10

God's Son has received our own flesh in the unity of His person. In this way He has become our true Brother. Hebrews 2:14 says, "Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise partook of the same things." Again, "He had to be made like His brothers in every respect, yet without sin" [Hb. 2:16,4:15]. In the same way, Christ redeemed human nature as His work, sanctifies it, raises it from the dead, and gloriously adorns it as His work. But original sin He has not created, received, redeemed, or sanctified. He will not raise it, adorn it, or save it in the elect. In the resurrection original sin will be entirely destroyed [1 Co. 15:51-57].

     The distinction can easily be discerned between (a) the corrupt nature, (b) the corruption, which infects the nature, and (c) the corruption by which the nature became corrupt.

     Original sin is not a minor corruption. It is so deep a corruption of human nature that nothing healthy or uncorrupt remains in man's body or soul [Romans 3:10-12].

     This damage cannot be understood by reason, but only from God's Word. We affirm that no one but God alone can separate human nature and this corruption of human nature from each other. This will fully come to pass through death, in the resurrection. At that time our nature will rise and live eternally without original sin.