ORDER of WORSHIP
August 2, 2020
“Ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name; worship the Lord in holy splendor.”
Psalm 29:2
Greeting and Welcome
Prelude Music
Call to Worship
Leader: Praise the Lord!
All: We gather to sing praises to God.
Leader: Praise the Lord!
All: We gather to give thanks for all God has done in our lives.
Leader: Praise the Lord!
All: We gather to worship our creator, redeemer, and sustainer.
Opening Prayer
All: Holy One, we come before you with sighs too deep for words. We come with hearts overwhelmed—by the world, by personal relationships, and by inward struggles. We come to praise your name and to be reassured of your unending grace. In this time of worship, open our hearts to your presence. Open our ears to hear your word proclaimed. Open our hands to serve you and the world. May our lives reflect Christ, who walks with us and gives us life. In the name of Christ, we pray. Amen.
Hymn of Praise “To God Be the Glory” UMH #98, Words: Fanny J. Crosby, 1875. Music: William H. Doane, 1875.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733303. All rights reserved.
- To God be the glory, great things he hath done!
So loved he the world that he gave us his Son,
who yielded his life an atonement for sin,
and opened the lifegate that all may go in.Refrain:
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
let the earth hear his voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father thru Jesus the Son,
and give him the glory, great things he hath done!2. O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
to every believer the promise of God;
the vilest offender who truly believes,
that moment from Jesus a pardon receives.
(Refrain)3. Great things he hath taught us, great things he hath done,
and great our rejoicing thru Jesus the Son;
but purer, and higher, and greater will be
our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.
(Refrain)
Affirmation of Faith A Modern Affirmation #885 UMH
Leader: Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is the one true church, apostolic and universal, whose holy faith let us now declare:
All: We believe in God the Father, infinite in wisdom, power, and love, whose mercy is over all his works, and whose will is ever directed to his children’s good.
We believe in Jesus Christ, Son of God and Son of man, the gift of the Father’s unfailing grace, the ground of our hope, and the promise of our deliverance from sin and death.
We believe in the Holy Spirit as the divine presence in our lives, whereby we are kept in perpetual remembrance of the truth of Christ, and find strength and help in time of need.
We believe that this faith should manifest itself in the service of love as set forth in the example of our blessed Lord, to the end that the kingdom of God may come upon the earth. Amen.
Gloria Patri “Glory Be to the Father” UMH #71 Words: Lesser Doxology, 3rd-4th Cent. Music: Henry W. Greatorex, 1851.
Glory be to the Father
and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now and ever shall be,
world without end,
Amen. Amen.
Scripture Reading Romans 8:26-39 (NRSV)
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercede with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn within a large family. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,
“For your sake we are being killed all day long;
we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Liturgist: The Word of God for the people of God.
All: Thanks be to God.
Sermon “Sighs Too Deep for Words” Rev. Matt Sergent
The Love Feast (Portions of this service are taken from The Order of Saint Luke, prepared by Beth Fender, OSL; Elizabeth Moore, OSL; and Dwight Vogel, OSL, 2020)
(Note: Have a small glass of water and piece of bread available for each person viewing to participate in this portion of the service.)
Pastor: God is with us.
All: We are not alone.
Pastor: Christ is with us.
All: The Risen One has met us, blessed and fed us on the road that leads us home.
Pastor: The community of the Holy Spirit is with us.
All: We gather with the communion of the saints in light throughout history and with God’s people around the world.
Pastor: With brothers and sisters, absent in body but united in Spirit, we pray: Holy One, Trinity of grace and power, Maker and Mother, Beloved and Lover, Father and Friend: Thanks be to you, O God!
All: You are ever the father who gives us bread, not stones. You are the mother who never forgets we’re her own. From the beginning of life to the closing of time, you are the One who is with us to the end.
Pastor: And so, with all who breathe on earth and all who sing in heaven, we praise your name and join Creation’s song:
Sung Response: “Now thank we all our God with heart and hands and voices, who wondrous things has done in whom this world rejoices, the one eternal God, whom earth and heaven adore, for thus it was, is now, and shall be evermore.” UMH #102 Martin Rinkart, 1663, translated by Catherine Winkworth, 1858.
(Taking of the Bread and Cup of Water)
Prayer / Lord’s Prayer
Hymn “My Life Flows On (How Can I Keep from Singing)” TFWS #2212 Words and Music by Robert Lowry.
Reprinted with permission under ONE LICENSE #A-733303. All rights reserved
- My life flows on in endless song;
above earth’s lamentation,
I catch the sweet, though far off hymn
that hails a new creation.
Refrain:
No storm can shake my inmost calm
while to that Rock I’m clinging.
Since Christ is Lord of heaven and earth,
how can I keep from singing?
2.Through all the tumult and the strife,
I hear that music ringing.
It finds an echo in my soul.
How can I keep from singing?
(Refrain)
- What though my joys and comforts die?
I know my Savior liveth.
What though the darkness gather round?
Songs in the night he giveth.
(Refrain) - The peace of Christ makes fresh my heart,
a fountain ever springing!
All things are mine since I am his!
How can I keep from singing?
(Refrain)
Benediction
Go forth knowing that you are part of God’s family.
Go forth proclaiming the praises of God.
Go forth in the assurance that Christ is always with us.
Go forth to bring the kingdom of God wherever you are.
Postlude
The Call to Worship, Opening Prayer, and Benediction are taken from the Abingdon Worship Annual, Karin Ellis, 2020.
