May 31st, Sermon & Ministry Resources

"The Name that Changes Everything" (Matthew 28:16–20) — with Gen. 1:1–2; Psalm 8:1; 2 Cor. 13:13

Lectionary Readings — Trinity Sunday — May 31, 2026

Genesis 1:1-2:4a; Psalm 8; 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; Matthew 28:16-20

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Call to Worship (based on Matthew 28:16-20)

Leader: The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them.

People: We have come today because He called us here — not by accident, but by grace.

Leader: When they saw him, they worshiped him — but some doubted.

People: Lord, we come with our worship and our questions both. Receive us as we are.

Leader: Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

People: We gather under that authority this morning — there is no power greater, no throne higher, no name above His name.

Leader: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

People: We are the result of that commission — someone went, someone spoke, someone baptized. Now we carry it forward.

Leader: “Teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.”

People: Teach us, Lord. We are still learning what it means to follow You fully.

Leader: “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

All: We worship today in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit — one God, present with us now, faithful to the end. We are not alone, and we are not without a mission. Send us forward in the power of Your name. Amen.

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Opening Prayer (based on Genesis 1:1-2:4a)

Let us pray:

Loving Father,

In the beginning — before light, before land, before the first creature drew its first breath — You were. Not waiting. Not preparing. Simply being, in the fullness of Your triune life, complete in Yourself, lacking nothing, needing no audience and no occasion to be God. We come before You this morning undone by that truth. You did not create because You were lonely. You created because You are good, and goodness, by its very nature, overflows.

We confess that we take the world for granted. We move through days thick with Your handiwork — light and darkness, sea and sky, seed-bearing trees and creatures of every kind — and we forget that every single thing we have ever seen or touched or tasted is the overflow of Your creative Word. You spoke, and it was. You called it good, and it was good. Forgive us for living in Your cathedral as though it were merely a convenience.

On this Trinity Sunday, we bow before the mystery that was present in that first act of creation — the Father speaking, the Spirit hovering, the Word going forth — one God, yet not solitary, moving together in perfect unity to make something out of nothing and call it very good. We cannot fully comprehend that mystery, Father. But we can worship in the presence of it.

Remind us today that we are not accidents. We were made in Your image — carefully, intentionally, on purpose — and then You rested, not from exhaustion, but in satisfaction. That rest still speaks. It tells us that what You make, You declare finished. What You declare finished, You declare good. And what You declare good, You do not abandon.

Speak to us now through Your Word, as You have always spoken — and let something new be made in us.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit —

Amen.

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[NOTE to Paid subscribers — scroll down for the full manuscript sermon]

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Sermon Outline: "The Name that Changes Everything"

Based on Matthew 28:16–20 — with Gen. 1:1–2; Psalm 8:1; 2 Cor. 13:13

I. The Authority Behind the Name (Matt. 28:18; Gen. 1:1–2; Psalm 8:1)

II. The Assignment Carried by the Name (Matt. 28:19–20a)

III. The Assurance Sealed by the Name (Matt. 28:20b; 2 Cor. 13:13)

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Full Manuscript Sermon Below for Paid Subscribers