Welcome
Thank you so much for joining us! The following page will take you through the order of worship for this Sunday.
If you are new, welcome! We also want to invite you to learn more about us. You can do so by selecting the button below.
If you are new, welcome! We also want to invite you to learn more about us. You can do so by selecting the button below.
A few tips for parents:
- Plan for your time – read through the guide and prepare the room where you are gathering
- Make your time joyful – have fun!!!
- Remember, it’s primarily about a relationship, not a task to scratch off
- Have your kids participate in age and maturity appropriate ways – reading, singing, etc.
Time of Reflection
“The grace of God is love freely shown towards guilty sinners, contrary to their merit and indeed in defiance of their demerit. It is God showing goodness to persons who deserve only severity and had no reason to expect anything but severity…. [G]race means so little to some… because they do not share the beliefs about God and man which it presupposes.”
“Grace is free in that it of self-originated, and of proceeding from One who was free not to be gracious.”
~J.I. Packer (1926-2020), English-born theologian
“[I]f God were not angry at injustice…and did not make the final end to violence, God would not be worthy of our worship…. My thesis that the practice of nonviolence requires a belief in divine vengeance will be unpopular with many Christians, especially theologians in the West…. [But] I suggest imagining that you are delivering a lecture in a war zone (which is where a paper that underlies this chapter was originally delivered). Among your listeners are people whose…villages have been first plundered, then burned, and leveled to the ground, whose daughters and sisters have been raped, whose fathers and brothers have had their throats slit…. The topic of the lecture: a Christian attitude toward violence. The thesis: we should not retaliate since God is perfect noncoercive love. Soon you would discover that it takes the quiet of a suburban home for the birth of the thesis that human nonviolence corresponds to God’s refusal to judge. In a scorched land, soaked in the blood of the innocent, it will invariably die. And as one watches it die, one will do well to reflect about many other pleasant captivities of the liberal mind.”
~Miroslav Volf, Croatian-born theologian, professor at Yale
“The people who heard Jesus’ disciples proclaiming the Good News were as impressed by what they saw [Christian love in action] as by what they heard…. Conventional love is evoked by lovable qualities in the beloved, but the love people encountered from Christ embraced sinners and outcasts, Samaritans and enemies. It gave, not prudentially in order to receive, but because giving was its nature.”
~Huston Smith (1919-2016), former chair of the Philosophy Department at MIT
“The generous will prosper;
those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.”
~Proverbs 11:25 (NLT)
“We deserved death, wrath, and hell forever. Jesus took our liability…. Jesus drank our hell.”
~Conrad Mbewe, Zambian pastor
“Grace is free in that it of self-originated, and of proceeding from One who was free not to be gracious.”
~J.I. Packer (1926-2020), English-born theologian
“[I]f God were not angry at injustice…and did not make the final end to violence, God would not be worthy of our worship…. My thesis that the practice of nonviolence requires a belief in divine vengeance will be unpopular with many Christians, especially theologians in the West…. [But] I suggest imagining that you are delivering a lecture in a war zone (which is where a paper that underlies this chapter was originally delivered). Among your listeners are people whose…villages have been first plundered, then burned, and leveled to the ground, whose daughters and sisters have been raped, whose fathers and brothers have had their throats slit…. The topic of the lecture: a Christian attitude toward violence. The thesis: we should not retaliate since God is perfect noncoercive love. Soon you would discover that it takes the quiet of a suburban home for the birth of the thesis that human nonviolence corresponds to God’s refusal to judge. In a scorched land, soaked in the blood of the innocent, it will invariably die. And as one watches it die, one will do well to reflect about many other pleasant captivities of the liberal mind.”
~Miroslav Volf, Croatian-born theologian, professor at Yale
“The people who heard Jesus’ disciples proclaiming the Good News were as impressed by what they saw [Christian love in action] as by what they heard…. Conventional love is evoked by lovable qualities in the beloved, but the love people encountered from Christ embraced sinners and outcasts, Samaritans and enemies. It gave, not prudentially in order to receive, but because giving was its nature.”
~Huston Smith (1919-2016), former chair of the Philosophy Department at MIT
“The generous will prosper;
those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.”
~Proverbs 11:25 (NLT)
“We deserved death, wrath, and hell forever. Jesus took our liability…. Jesus drank our hell.”
~Conrad Mbewe, Zambian pastor
Opening Prayer
(select someone from your group to open your service in prayer)
Call to Worship
Psalm 103:1-5 (ESV)
LEADER: Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
PEOPLE: Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
LEADER: Who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
ALL: Who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
LEADER: Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
PEOPLE: Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
LEADER: Who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
ALL: Who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
Songs & Liturgy
(sing as a group and/or sing along to recorded versions)
I STAND AMAZED
(Charles Hutchinson Gabriel, 1856-1932)
(Charles Hutchinson Gabriel, 1856-1932)
I stand amazed in the presence,
of Jesus the Nazarene,
And wonder how He could love me,
a sinner, condemned, unclean.
CHORUS:
How marvelous! How wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
How marvelous! How wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!
He took my sins and my sorrows,
and made them His very own;
He bore the burden to Calvary,
and suffered and died alone.
(CHORUS)
For me it was in the garden,
He prayed: “Not my will, but Thine.”
He had no tears for His own griefs,
but sweat-drops of blood for mine.
(CHORUS)
He binds up the broken hearted,
brings honor to those with shame.
The unclean he graciously cleanses,
the outcast receives his embrace.
(CHORUS)
PUBLIC DOMAIN
of Jesus the Nazarene,
And wonder how He could love me,
a sinner, condemned, unclean.
CHORUS:
How marvelous! How wonderful!
And my song shall ever be:
How marvelous! How wonderful!
Is my Savior’s love for me!
He took my sins and my sorrows,
and made them His very own;
He bore the burden to Calvary,
and suffered and died alone.
(CHORUS)
For me it was in the garden,
He prayed: “Not my will, but Thine.”
He had no tears for His own griefs,
but sweat-drops of blood for mine.
(CHORUS)
He binds up the broken hearted,
brings honor to those with shame.
The unclean he graciously cleanses,
the outcast receives his embrace.
(CHORUS)
PUBLIC DOMAIN
Psalm Meditation: Psalm 103:6-18 (ESV)
LEADER: The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.
PEOPLE: He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel.
LEADER: The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
PEOPLE: He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever.
LEADER: He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.
PEOPLE: For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
LEADER: as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
PEOPLE: As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
LEADER: For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.
PEOPLE: As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field;
LEADER: For the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.
PEOPLE: But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children,
LEADER: To those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments.
LEADER: The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed.
PEOPLE: He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel.
LEADER: The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
PEOPLE: He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever.
LEADER: He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.
PEOPLE: For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
LEADER: as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
PEOPLE: As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.
LEADER: For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.
PEOPLE: As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field;
LEADER: For the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.
PEOPLE: But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children,
LEADER: To those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments.
Sharing
(as a lead into the Prayer Time, as a group share how you are feeling and what you are learning; below are suggested questions)
Prayer Time
(You may have an open time of prayer or select someone to pray)
- Pray for our church’s short and long-term meeting place needs, that God would give us favor in the eyes of those in authority and that He would give us provision that would go far beyond all that we could ask or imagine.
- Pray for our world – that the good news of Jesus Christ would flourish and that many would come to know God genuinely and personally.
- Pray for those experiencing racial injustices; specifically, that God would bring hope, reconciliation, and restoration through the good news of His Son.
- Pray for those in authority at every level in our country, that they would govern wisely and justly.
Listen to Sermon
“The Grace of God”
preached by Pastor Don Willeman
preached by Pastor Don Willeman
Song of Response
(sing as a group and/or sing along to recorded versions)
AMAZING GRACE
(John Newton, 1779)
(John Newton, 1779)
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
‘Tis grace that brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we first begun.
PUBLIC DOMAIN
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
Was blind but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
‘Tis grace that brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.
When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we first begun.
PUBLIC DOMAIN
Confession of Faith
LEADER: We confess with all the Church at all times and in all places:
ALL: Jesus, the Messiah, is Lord.
WOMEN: Lord of heaven…
MEN: And Lord of earth.
LEADER: Lord of all the nations…
ALL: And Lord of our lives. Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. Whom shall we fear?
ALL: Jesus, the Messiah, is Lord.
WOMEN: Lord of heaven…
MEN: And Lord of earth.
LEADER: Lord of all the nations…
ALL: And Lord of our lives. Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. Whom shall we fear?
Sharing Time
(have everyone share one thing that struck them from the sermon)
Closing Meditation
Psalm 103:19-22 (ESV)
LEADER: The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
and his kingdom rules over all.
PEOPLE: Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his word,
obeying the voice of his word!
LEADER: Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
his ministers, who do his will!
ALL: Bless the Lord, all his works,
in all places of his dominion.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
LEADER: The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
and his kingdom rules over all.
PEOPLE: Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his word,
obeying the voice of his word!
LEADER: Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
his ministers, who do his will!
ALL: Bless the Lord, all his works,
in all places of his dominion.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Benediction
(The leader or individual should read this aloud relishing in the confident assertion that Christ has conquered.)
Luke 12:29-32
LEADER: Do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
PEOPLE: Amen!
Luke 12:29-32
LEADER: Do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
PEOPLE: Amen!