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 TWENTIETH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
October 10, 2021
Lord Jesus Christ, whose grace always precedes and follows us, help us to forsake all trust in earthly gain and to find in You our heavenly treasure; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
THIS WEEK AT ST. JOHN’S Today, October 10, 2021 8:30 a.m. SS School/Adult Class 9:30 a.m. Divine Service 10:30 a.m. Council Meeting 1:00 p.m. Partnership Highway Clean-Up Tuesday, October 12, 2021 NO Morning Prayer Pastor at Fall Pastor’s Conference | Wednesday, October 13, 2021 6:00 p.m. Christian Catechesis Sunday, October 17, 2021 8:30 a.m. SS School/Adult Class 9:30 a.m. Divine Service 10:30 a.m. Voter’s Meeting THIS WEEK IN THE CHURCH YEAR October 11, 2021 Commemoration of Philip, Deacon |
ST. JOHN’S NEWS
Organist Today: Kitty Bierstedt
Elder for October: Jerry Koestler
Greeters: Hannah, Penny and Amelia Cowell
Quarterly Council Meeting will be held today immediately following the service. The Voter’s Meeting will be held Sunday, October 17, 2021 at 10:30 a.m.
Share the Blessings is your opportunity to give thanks to God by giving a monetary offering in praise of Him and in service to His Church. While Share the Blessings originated as Corn, Bean, Cash as an opportunity for farmers to give of the firstfruits of their harvest, all at St. John’s are welcome to take this special opportunity to give back to God from the abundance of the good gifts He has given to us. There is a letter and special envelope in your church box if you would like to participate.
Parish Messenger Articles for the November/December edition are due to Linda Kerkove by Sunday, October 24.
Portals of Prayer for October-December are now available along the east wall in the back.
Church Year Resource - Would you like to know more about the special people and events we commemorate throughout the Church Year? You can read a short introduction into each commemoration and feast day as they come up in the calendar year at communication.cph.org/
Worship by Phone - Beginning October 24th, if you would like to receive the audio of the worship service on Sunday through your phone, you will need to dial area code 515 along with the worship-by-phone number of 924-4444, even if you are calling locally. This change is due to a new rule requiring all numbers in the 515 area code to add the area code to all local calls.
Service Livestream Operator Informational Meeting - If you have any interest in assisting with the weekly setup of our service livestreams at St. John’s, or would simply like to learn how to set up a video livestream, please plan to attend a short meeting Sunday, October 24 after church in the church basement.
Flocknote Prayer Chain Coordinator Wanted - St. John’s is looking for a volunteer to be our Flocknote Prayer Chain coordinator. This volunteer would be responsible for scheduling (in advance) our daily prayer text messages, including creating prayers submitted by members and prayers in light of various contemporary events. While the volunteer should be comfortable operating the basic functions of a computer, the Flocknote program is very easy to work with and Pastor Cowell will give you a step-by-step training for how to schedule the prayers. You can expect the time commitment for this position to be around 1-2 hours a month. Please speak with Pastor Cowell if you are interested in helping in this way.
St. John’s T-Shirts are available in the church office for $6.00.
Greeter and Usher Sign-up - There are still plenty of open spots for greeters and ushers! The sign-up sheet is on the back table.
Hymn of the Month devotions for October are available on the lectern in the back of church. You can also view a digital version of the Hymn of the Month devotion at:
trinityalgona.org/blog/2021/09/29/rise-my-soul-to-watch-and-pray.
Pastoral Care On Demand - Need prayer, Scripture, Communion, Absolution, or a listening ear? Feel free to call or text Pastor Cowell anytime for a visit at 319-464-5548.
SYNOD, DISTRICT & PARTNERSHIP NEWS
Highway Clean-Up - Our fall Partnership highway clean-up day is scheduled for today at 1:00 p.m. This event is open to all ages as long as children have an adult with them (this would make a great Catechesis mercy project!). When you sign up in the back of church, please indicate if you’ll be meeting in the Trinity or St. John’s parking lot.
Trinity Weekday Bible Class - All are welcome to attend a weekly Bible study on Wednesdays at 9:30 in the Trinity Life Center conference room. They are currently studying 1 Corinthians
Trinity, Algona Resources - Visit trinitalgona.org or search “Trinity, Algona” on YouTube and Facebook to view Trinity’s several digital resources for your faith.
Did You Know: Today is World Mental Health Day. Trauma, emotional distress, or mental illness negatively impact many people, including those within our church fellowship. When it does, we are often left searching for answers without knowing where to find help. Lutheran Family Service offers professional mental health counseling from master’s prepared and licensed therapists, now available to all regardless of location through telehealth. Lutheran Family Service - www.LutheranFamilyService.org.
COMMUNITY NEWS
Trunk-or-Treat - The Churches of Burt will be hosting a trunk-or-treat in the Presbyterian parking lot in conjunction with the town of Burt's trick-or-treating night: Saturday, October 30 from 5:00-7:00. The trunk-or-treat will feature candy, a meal you can either sit down and eat or take to-go, and other fun activities. If you would like to host a trunk or volunteer in any way, please text or call Hannah Cowell at 712-294-4962. Feel free to take and distribute a Trunk or Treat flier on the back table.
Burt Lions Club is hosting their annual Omelet Breakfast on Sunday, October 24th from 9:00 a.m. -1:00 p.m. at the Activity Complex.
Festive Fall on Walnut Street - Burt Woman's Club is sponsoring the decorating of the flower pots on main street. If you would like to decorate one, contact Kelly at City Hall. Judging will be the last week in October.
LECTIONARY SUMMARY (Proper 23)
Old Testament: Amos 5:6-7, 10-15
Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you.
Epistle: Hebrews 3:12-19
Take care lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from God. Exhort one another that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
Gospel: Mark 10:17-22
Jesus tells a rich man: “go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me,” and the man goes away sorrowful.
FROM THE CHURCH FATHERS
“The young man went away sad, so anyone can see how far he kept those commandments of the law. I think he spoke with more pride than truth when he answered that he had kept them.” - Augustine, Letters, 157, To Hilarius, qtd. in ACCS: Mark, 142.
LESSONS ON THE LITURGY
The Law and the Gospel
The Law teaches what we are to do and not to do; the Gospel teaches what God has done, and still does, in Jesus, for our salvation. The Law shows us our sin and the wrath of God; the Gospel shows us our Savior and brings God’s grace and favor. The Law must be proclaimed to all people, but especially to sinners who refuse to repent; the Gospel must be proclaimed to sinners who are troubled by their sins. See Romans 3:20; John 6:63; Romans 1:16. - An Explanation of the Small Catechism (2017), p. 49
FROM THE BOOK OF CONCORD
Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article V: Love and Fulfilling the Law, para. 170-171
The Gospel has not been given in vain to the world, and that Christ has not been promised and set forth, has not been born, has not suffered, has not risen again in vain. We are justified not by reason or by the Law. Therefore, in regard to justification, we are compelled to disagree with the adversaries. For the Gospel shows another way. The Gospel compels us to make use of Christ in justification. The Gospel teaches that through Christ we have access to God through faith. It teaches that we ought to set Him as Mediator and Atoning Sacrifice against God's anger. The Gospel teaches that through faith in Christ the forgiveness of sins and reconciliation are received, and the terrors of sin and of death are overcome. Paul also says that righteousness is not of the Law, but of the promise. The Father has promised that He wants to forgive, that for Christ's sake He wants to be reconciled. This promise, however, is received through faith alone, as Paul testifies in Romans 4:13. This faith alone receives the forgiveness of sins, justifies, and regenerates. Then love and other good fruit follow. Therefore, we teach that a person is justified (as we have said above) when conscience, terrified by the preaching of repentance, is cheered and believes that for Christ's sake it has a reconciled God. "Faith is counted as righteousness [before God]" (Romans 4:3, 5).
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