Worship at Our Savior

“The rhythm of our worship is from our Lord to us, and then from us back to him. He gives us his gifts, and together we receive and extol them. We build one another up as we speak to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Our Lord gives us his body to eat and his blood to drink. Finally his blessing moves us out into our calling, where his gifts have their fruition.”
Dr. Norman Nagel
 
"What should occur in this house of God is that our dear Lord Himself speaks to us through His Holy Word, and that we, in turn, speak to Him in prayer and songs of praise."  
Martin Luther

Worship has two components:
God reaching out to His people through the Gospel of Christ in Word and Sacrament, AND
God's people responding together in thanksgiving, praise, and prayer to the wonderful things that God has done.

Easter at OSL

Worship Times & Schedules

Please join us in our Sanctuary or by Livestream 

Sundays at 9:30 A.M.
Our traditional order of service is completely printed in a bulletin for the day, which includes a combination of hymns primarily from these hymnals:
Lutheran Service Book, Copyright © 2006 Concordia Publishing House
The Lutheran Hymnal, Copyright © 1941 Concordia Publishing House

 
Early Adult Bible Class is offered at 8:15 A.M.
Sunday School and Bible Classes for all ages begin at 10:45 A.M.
Consult the Sunday bulletin or take a look at the classes offered for children here or for adults here.
Wednesdays at 7:00 PM, during the seasons of Advent and Lent 
Lent is the 6 weeks before Easter beginning on Ash Wednesday, which is February 14, 2024.
Advent begins from the 4th Sunday before Christmas. Our Wednesday evening services will be: Dec 4, 11,  & 18, 2024.

What to Expect 

"The Lutheran Church is a liturgical church. That means that the basic pattern of our worship is drawn from services that have been used by Christians for many centuries, all across the world. The components of the liturgy come from the Bible and serve to focus our worship on the Word of God and our response to it in faith.

"[The liturgy] something more than a heritage. It is a living, flexible, powerful instrument for today...The liturgy represents the objective, the universal, and the eternal rather than the individualistic and the temporal...It brings the church of today into conscious fellowship with our Lord, with the prophets and apostles, the confessors and martyrs of old. It lifts the church militant on earth in confident faith and hope into spiritual communion with the Church Triumphant, with the saints in heaven, and with Christ Himself, our heavenly King.” (The Lutheran Liturgy, Luther D. Reed, Fortress Press: Philadelphia, 1947)
 
Our Savior Lutheran Church uses the traditional liturgies that have been in use throughout the history of the Christian Church. The hymns and liturgies (orders of worship) used in our services are primarily taken from Lutheran Service Book (© 2006, Concordia Publishing House) The Lutheran Hymnal (© 1941, Concordia Publishing House), and Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary (© 1996, Morningstar Publishers). These worship forms and hymns emphasize God's service to us in giving us the forgiveness of sins won by Christ on the cross. All services are fully printed in the bulletin for the day.
 
The forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation won for us on the cross by Jesus are delivered to us by the Holy Spirit through what we call the Means of Grace. The Means of Grace include God's words of forgiveness that we hear spoken through His holy word (including preaching and holy absolution) and in the sacraments of Holy Baptism and the Lord's Supper.

The Sacrament of the Altar

What is the Sacrament of the Altar?
It is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ under the bread and wine, instituted by Christ Himself for us Christians to eat and to drink.
 
Where is this written?
 The holy Evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke, and St. Paul write:Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the night when He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to the disciples and said: “Take, eat; this is My body, which is given for you. This do in remembrance of Me.”
In the same way also He took the cup after supper, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you; this cup is the new testament in My blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
 
What is the benefit of this eating and drinking?
These words, “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins,” show us that in the Sacrament forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given us through these words. For where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.

How can bodily eating and drinking do such great things?
Certainly not just eating and drinking do these things, but the words written here: “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” These words, along with the bodily eating and drinking, are the main thing in the Sacrament. Whoever believes these words has exactly what they say: “forgiveness of sins.”
 
Who receives this sacrament worthily?
Fasting and bodily preparation are certainly fine outward training. But that person is truly worthy and well prepared who has faith in these words: “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.”
But anyone who does not believe these words or doubts them is unworthy and unprepared, for the words “for you” require all hearts to believe.
 
The Lord's Supper is celebrated at Our Savior on the 2nd and 4th Sundays of each month and at festival services. Our Lord invites to His table those who trust His words, repent of all sin, and set aside any refusal to forgive and love as He forgives and loves us, that they may show forth His death until He comes. Because those who eat and drink our Lord’s body and blood unworthily do so to their great harm and because Holy Communion is a confession of the faith which is confessed at this altar, any who are not yet instructed, in doubt or who hold a confession differing from that of this congregation and The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, and yet desire to receive the Sacrament, are asked first to speak with one of our pastors.

The Sacrament of Holy Baptism

What is Baptism?
Baptism is not just plain water, but it is the water included in God's command and combined with God's word.
 
Which is that word of God?
Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Matthew: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matt. 28:19)
 
What benefits does baptism give?
It works forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare.

Which are these words and promises of God?
Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Mark: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” (Mark 16:16)
 
How can water do such great things?
Certainly not just water, but the word of God in and with the water does these things, along with the faith which trusts this word of God in the water. For without God’s word the water is plain water and no Baptism. But with the word of God it is a Baptism, that is, a life-giving water, rich in grace, and a washing of the new birth in the Holy Spirit, as St. Paul says in Titus, chapter three: “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying.” (Titus 3:5–8)
 
What does such baptizing with water indicate?
It indicates that the Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.
 
Where is this written?
St. Paul writes in Romans chapter six: “We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Rom. 6:4)

Confession

What is Confession?
Confession has two parts. First, that we confess our sins, and second, that we receive absolution, that is, forgiveness, from the pastor as from God Himself, not doubting, but firmly believing that by it our sins are forgiven before God in heaven.
 
What sins should we confess?
Before God we should plead guilty of all sins, even those we are not aware of, as we do in the Lord’s Prayer; but before the pastor we should confess only those sins which we know and feel in our hearts.
 
Which are these?
Consider your place in life according to the Ten Commandments: Are you a father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, or worker? Have you been disobedient, unfaithful, or lazy? Have you been hot-tempered, rude, or quarrelsome? Have you hurt someone by your words or deeds? Have you stolen, been negligent, wasted anything, or done any harm?
 
When the Lord's Supper is celebrated at Our Savior, the service includes a general confession of sins and absolution. Private confession is available with our pastors by appointment.