LAST SUNDAY OF THE CHURCH YEAR November 23, 2025
Immanuel Ev. Lutheran Church
Wisconsin Synod
Pastor Rev. Christopher Oehlke Pastor’s Phone: 1-262-909-7827
Organist Karen Davis, Mindy Kane, Church Telephone 763-682-4573
Lorraine Roush Email pastor@myimmanuel.org
WELCOME, VISITORS: We are glad you could be with us and we welcome you back any time. Please sign our “Welcome” card found in the pew holders or sign the guest book in the narthex/entry.
Prayer Before Worship
O Lord—our Maker, Redeemer, and Comforter—we are assembled in your presence to hear your holy Word. We pray that you would open our hearts by your Holy Spirit, that through the preaching of your Word we may repent of our sins, believe in Jesus, and grow day by day in grace and holiness. Hear us for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
SERVICE OF THE WORD
HYMN (#220) “O’er the Distant Mountains Breaking”
M: The grace of our Lord (+) Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you.
C: And also with you.
CONFESSION OF SINS
M: We have come into the presence of God, who created us to love and serve him as his dear children. But we have disobeyed him and deserve only his wrath and punishment. Therefore, let us confess our sins to him and plead for his mercy.
C: Merciful Father in heaven, I am altogether sinful from birth.
In countless ways I have sinned against you and do not deserve to be called your child. But trusting in Jesus, my Savior, I pray: Have mercy on me according to your unfailing love. Cleanse me from my sin, and take away
my guilt.
M: God, our heavenly Father, has forgiven all your sins. By the perfect life and innocent death of our Lord Jesus Christ, he has removed your guilt forever. You are his own dear child. May God give you strength to live according to his will.
C: Amen.
PRAYER AND PRAISE
M: In the peace of forgiveness, let us praise the Lord.
C: (Sung) Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good.
Blessed are they who take refuge in him.
Your Word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.
Your faithfulness continues forever.
Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good.
Blessed are they who take refuge in him.
PRAYER OF THE DAY
M: Let us pray: Eternal God, merciful Father, you have appointed your Son as judge of the living and the dead. Enable us to wait for the day of his return with our eyes fixed on the kingdom prepared for your own from the foundation of the world; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C: (Sung) Amen.
THE WORD
FIRST LESSON Habakkuk 1:1-3; 2:1-4
1 The threatening oracle which the prophet Habakkuk saw. 2 How long, Lord, must I cry for help, but you do not listen? I call out to you, “Violence!” but you do not save! 3 Why do you cause me to see injustice? Why do you overlook misery? Devastation and violence confront me. There is strife, and tensions rise.
2 I will stand at my watch post and station myself on the city wall. I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer he will give to my complaint. 2 Then the Lord answered me. He said: Record the vision and write it plainly on tablets so that a herald may run with it. 3 Indeed, the vision is waiting for the appointed time. It longs for fulfillment and will not prove false. If it seems slow in coming, wait for it, because it will certainly come and will not be delayed. 4 Look, his soul is puffed up and is not righteous within him—but the righteous one will live by his faith. (EHV)
M: The Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
PSALM OF THE DAY (Sung) Psalm 130 (page 114)
SECOND LESSON Romans 13:11-14
11 And do this since you understand the present time. It is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is almost over, and the day is drawing near. So let us put away the deeds of darkness and put on the weapons of light. 13 Let us walk decently as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual sin and wild living, not in strife and jealousy. 14 Instead, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not give any thought to satisfying the desires of your sinful flesh. (EHV)
M: The Word of the Lord.
C: Thanks be to God.
VERSE OF THE DAY
M: Alleluia. Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. Alleluia. (Matthew 24:42)
C: (Sung) Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
These words are written that we may believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
GOSPEL Luke 12:35-40
35 “Be dressed, ready for service, and keep your lamps burning. 36 Be like people waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 37 Blessed are those servants, whom the master will find watching when he comes. Amen I tell you: He will dress himself and have them recline at the table, and he will come and serve them. 38 Even if he comes in the second or third watch, they will be blessed if he finds them alert. 39 But know this: If the master of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 40 You also be ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you are not expecting him.” (EHV)
M: The Gospel of the Lord.
C: (Sung) Praise be to you, O Christ!
HYMN (#29) “Lo, He Comes with Clouds Descending”
SERMON TEXT Romans 13:11-14
SERMON THEME “Ready ! ?”
APOSTLES’ CREED
I believe in God, the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Christian Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
THANKSGIVING
OFFERING – Please leave offering in the plate as you depart.
HYMN (#206) “Wake, Awake, for Night is Flying”
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
M: O Lord, our God, you are wise and powerful, good and gracious.
Your mercies are new every morning. Each day you open your
hand and provide for the needs of your children on earth.
C: We praise you for every grace and blessing.
M: Strengthen your Church in all the world. Let your comforting
message of salvation in Christ Jesus be proclaimed to troubled
souls everywhere.
C: Use our ministries and offerings to extend your healing and
your hope.
M: We bring you our requests for the various structures of our
society. Bless our national, state, and local governments.
C: Grant us civil servants who are worthy of honor and respect.
M: Grant prosperity to our businesses and industries. Give employers
a sense of fairness toward their workers, and employees a feeling
of joy and pride in their workmanship.
C: Help us find satisfaction in all work well done.
M: Invigorate the schools of our land. Give success to every effort
that helps students read, think, and communicate in ways that will
promote an informed and responsible citizenry. Arouse curious
minds to discover the wonders of your created order.
C: Give us teachers and students who pursue excellence.
M: Strengthen the families of our country. Give fathers and mothers a
renewed commitment to be good parents. Give children and
young people the wisdom to regard their parents as your
representatives.
C: Lead us to love one another as you have loved us.
M: Hear us, Lord, as we bring you our private petitions.
Silent prayer.
M: Gracious Father, we pray boldly as Jesus taught, with the
confidence that you will hear and with the faith that you will
respond for our welfare.
C: Amen.
LORD’S PRAYER
C: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our
trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory
forever and ever. Amen.
M: O Lord God, our heavenly Father, pour out the Holy Spirit on your faithful people. Keep us strong in your grace and truth, protect and comfort us in all temptation, and bestow on us your saving peace, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
C: (Sung) Amen.
M: Brothers and sisters, go in peace. Live in harmony with one another. Serve the Lord with gladness.
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you.
The Lord look on you with favor and (+) give you peace.
C: (Sung) Amen. Amen. Amen.
HYMN (#331) “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah”
Ladies Fellowship
Party and Christmas-Giving Opportunities
Congregational Christmas Party – Dec. 7
Schedule of events includes caroling and games
with a potluck lunch following the 9:30 a.m. worship service.
Buy-in for the dice game will be a small wrapped gift (about $5 value).
Buffalo Food Shelf Special Collection
Bring your food shelf item(s) and place in the silver buckets
(or cash is always welcome).
Adopt-A-Family—Immanuel
Immanuel has two families. Pick an angel from the tree, add your name to half the angel and place it in the container provided; then use the other half of the angel for your shopping information (i.e. sizes, colors, etc.) For higher ticket items, consider sharing with someone? And cash donations are also accepted and we’ll shop for you.
Toys-for-Tots—Immanuel
Collection box available near the front door. Toys should be new, unwrapped and preferably in the $10 or above price range. Books are also a good idea. (Homemade toys are also accepted.)
LAST SUNDAY OF THE CHURCH YEAR November 23, 2025
Immanuel Ev. Lutheran Church
THE SCHEDULE
Tues., Nov. 25 7 p.m., Choir Practice
Wed., Nov. 26 7 p.m., Thanksgiving Eve Service
Next Sunday, Nov. 30, Greeters: Ray Schmidt
Visiting Shut-Ins for November: Donna Frank and Darlene Weese
OUR FATHER’S BUSINESS
THANKSGIVING EVE WORSHIP will be Wed., Nov. 26, 7 p.m. followed by pie and ice cream, hosted by Pastor Oehlke.
VOLUNTEERS SOUGHT FOR CHRISTMAS ACTIVITIES: Sign up on the table in the narthex if you can lend a hand.
CHILDRENS CHRISTMAS PROGRAM PRACTICE will begin the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Nov. 29 from 9 to 11 a.m.
ADVENT DEVOTIONS, “All Things New,” are provided for us by Martin Luther College and available on the table in the narthex.
MEDITATIONS entitled “Great Gain!” have arrived with daily devotions for Nov. 30 through Feb. 28. Large print editions are also available. Feel free to take additional copies of either version to share. A free-will offering would be gratefully accepted to help defray the costs.
ADVENT BY CANDLELIGHT: Mt. Olive-Delano will be hosting an “Advent by Candlelight” on Dec. 7 from 6-8 p.m. and will be a wonderful evening of the Word, music and fellowship to help prepare our hearts for the Advent Season. If you are interested or have questions, contact Julie Tomfohrde at 262-385-6298.
FOOD SHELF: The most recent donations made to benefit the Buffalo Food Shelf totaled 71 pounds plus $20 in cash/checks. Silver-labeled buckets are located in the coat racks in both the upper and lower narthex for this on-going service project with deliveries made monthly. There will be a special collection for the food shelf at our Thanksgiving Eve Service.
ATTENDANCE AT THE LORD’S HOUSE:
Sunday, Nov. 16 57
FOR THE LORD’S WORK: Nov. 16: General Fund-$2,972.60; West-$10 Salem-$10; Fishers-$5. Mission Report: Nov. 9-$10; Nov. 16-$550; YTD-$19,420.
Personal Devotions?
Consider using the prayers and readings from each Sunday’s worship bulletin during your daily personal/family devotions—
–“Prayer of the Day”
–“Prayer of the Church”
–Re-read God’s Word and reflect upon it and how it applies to you.
–Review the sermon theme and text and its applications for you.
