Traditional Service

Traditional Worship for St. Pete

Lutheran Church of the Cross has been serving the family of God in northern St. Petersburg for over sixty years. We are an expression of Christ’s mission of love for our neighborhoods, for St. Pete and for the world. We have a long history of welcoming people from various walks of the Christian tradition, believing that they all bring their best dishes to what we like to think of as our Christian Potluck. Our Traditional worship is based on the historic patterns of worship, but blends hymns of different styles and eras in praise to God. We welcome people of all Christian faiths, and all who are seeking to connect with God through Christ. For a home worship with contemporary music check out our Family Worship gathering. 

Before the Message

Twenty minutes into the service, we release the children for Kids Church. At that time, your kids can either stay with you, OR, go to do crafts, play games and fellowship with other kids all while being looked after and instructed by 3-5 former school teachers, all with with 25+ years experience. We also sing together, pray together and read the word of God together before the sermon starts.  

 After the Message – Holy Communion

As Pastor Lisa loves to say; and as everyone in our congregation believes – “ALL ARE WELCOME AT GOD’S TABLE. We affirm that when we receive the bread and wine (or grape juice, if preferred), Christ is truly present in, with and under those elements. When we receive his Body and Blood, it renews our relationship with God and gives us forgiveness and hope. All are indeed welcome at Christ’s Table. And if you’re unsure – don’t feel any pressure to participate. Just ask a Pastor after the service and they would be delighted to help guide you in your journey.

After the Sermon

Just because service ends, doesn’t mean you have to leave. Many members stay for up to a half hour at our Patio/Cafe area, or they go to the Family Service where everyone encourage to eat, talk and drink coffee. 

Christ-Centered for
The World

As a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, we affirm the classic confessions and statements of faith that are identified as Lutheran from the renewal of the church during the Reformation.  That said, we celebrate that our faith is alive and active, and so we listen for evidence of God in action everywhere. We are open to honest, respectful and faithful dialogue with all people, believing that we have much to learn from each other. Bottom line, we believe Christ is for the entire world, that he lived, died and rose from death for all people, and this news is simply too good to be kept to ourselves.

What we believe

We believe in God, the Father, who created the universe and is still active in
creation.
We believe Jesus is both fully human and fully God and is the deepest
manifestation of God’s love for us.
We believe that the Holy Spirit empowers us to believe and lives in us.
We believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God. Through the Bible, God
comes to us and shows us how to live.
We believe our identity is grounded in the Lutheran tradition of Christianity
with an emphasis on grace and faith. We also believe we have much to learn
from each other and welcome dialogue.
We believe that through baptism, God adopts us as children, no matter what
our age is when we are baptized. We also believe that in baptism, we die to
our old self and rise as a new, transformed sister or brother of Christ.
We believe that through the Lord’s Supper, Jesus comes to us in, with, and
under the bread and the wine, reassuring us that God deeply loves us and
forgives our sins.  

What we Value

We value lifelong learning of God’s Word, the Bible.
We value excellence in our worship experiences, believing that God comes to
us, speaks to our lives.
We value people and want each person to discover the joy of a relationship
with Jesus.

We value respect for all people. We celebrate diversity and believe in
affirming the inherent worth of each human being as a child of God.
We value children. We value instilling in children good values and strong faith
so that they may have lifelong success in living out their faith.
We value the education of our children and offer enrollment at our day school
from preschool through eighth grade.
We value our Lutheran traditions of grace, faith, and Word.
We value the life-transforming power of the unconditional love God has for us,
and we want to help people experience that power.
We value prayer as our conversation with God and seek out ways to continue
to grow stronger in our communication with God.