Welcome!
The broadcast of our live worship service is at 11 a.m. every Sunday. The prelude begins approximately at 10:50. 

 

Are you having troubles? Watch on FacebookLIVE

Did you just miss the service? That's OK. Our services are also available just minutes after they were streamed. 

 

View a PDF of the Worship bulletin here

September 27, 2020--Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost

We Come Together as God’s People

Prelude         Sarabande on "Land of Rest"          Gerald Near
                                                                                        (b. 1942)

Welcome           Rev. Christopher A. Henry

* Call to Worship                   Rev. Brian S. Shivers and Rev. Karen L. Lang

Leader One: Come to this time of worship and praise God.

Leader Two: We come, those of us with much faith,
and those of us wishing for more faith.

Leader One: Come to this place of prayer and seek God.

Leader Two: We come, those of us who know what it is to run, to walk, and to fly,
and those of us who know what it is to stumble.

Leader One: Come to this community of faith and love God.

Leader Two: We come, those of us who hunger and thirst for a better life and a more just world,
and those of us who long for a place to rest.

Leader One: We have come, and God is here, too.

Leader Two: Let us meet and be met by God.

* Prayer of Adoration

Opening Hymn #138       Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty       NICAEA

Call to Confession          We Are One in the Spirit       THEY’LL KNOW WE ARE CHRISTIANS

Prayer of Confession

Leader One: Holy and triune God,
                     You alone live in perfect relationship,
                     One God in three persons,
                     Mutual and loving,
                     Ever seeking reconciliation and unity.

Leader Two: We confess that our relationships are imperfect.
                     We are selfish and greedy.
                     We are anxious and resenting.
                     We feel the shame of our foolish behavior and brokenness.
                     We have allowed sin to drive us apart from one another
                     And from you.

Leader One: Forgive us and restore us.
                     Draw us close and bind us together in your mercy.
                     In the saving name of your son, Jesus Christ,
                     By the working power of your Holy Spirit. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon

* Response of Praise                   THEY’LL KNOW WE ARE CHRISTIANS

All praise to our Maker, from whom all things come,
And all praise to Christ Jesus, God’s only Son,
And all praise to the Spirit, who makes us one.
And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love;
Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.

* Passing of the Peace

Leader: The peace of Christ be with you.

People: And also with you.

We Experience God’s Word

Time with Children

Prayer for Illumination            Elder Marcy Haboush

First Scripture Lesson            Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7

Anthem          The Lord Builds the House            Anthony Cæsar
               Sanctuary Choir Section Leaders                       (b. 1924)

Except the Lord build the house: their labour is but lost that build it.
Behold now, praise the Lord: all ye servants of the Lord;
Ye that by night stand in the house of the Lord:
         even in the courts of the house of our God.
Lift up your hands in the sanctuary: and praise the Lord.
Except the Lord build the house: their labour is but lost that build it.
The Lord that made heav’n and earth: give thee blessing out of Sion.
Alleluia. Amen.

—Psalm 127:1; Psalm 134

Second Scripture Lesson          Galatians 5:13-15

Sermon           Rev. Christopher A. Henry

“Faithful Politics: The Common Good”
"For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'"
(Galatians 5:14)

We Give Thanks to God

* Affirmation of Faith from A Brief Statement of Faith Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)               Rev. Karen L. Lang

In life and in death we belong to God.
Through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God,
        and the communion of the Holy Spirit,
        we trust in the one triune God, the Holy One of Israel,
        whom alone we worship and serve.
In gratitude to God, empowered by the Spirit,
        we strive to serve Christ in our daily tasks and to live holy and joyful lives,
        even as we watch for God's new heaven and new earth,
        praying, "Come, Lord Jesus!"
With believers in every time and place,
        we rejoice that nothing in life or in death
        can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Invitation to Discipleship and Generosity

Offertory           A Reason to Celebrate!          David E. Morris
                               Handbell Ensemble
                            Rebecca Holt, director

Prayers of the People            Rev. Michael M. Samson

We Go Forth to Serve

* Closing Hymn #427            Lord, Whose Love Through Humble Service        BEACH SPRING

* Charge and Benediction

Postlude           Carillon           Herbert Murrill
                                                                  (1909-1952)