Praise to God for His Majesty
Call to Worship
I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the LORD!”
*Trinity Hymnal No. 12
Exalt the Lord, His Praise Proclaim
Exalt the Lord, his praise proclaim;
all ye his servants, praise his name,
who in the Lord's house ever stand
and humbly serve at his command.
The Lord is good, his praise proclaim;
since it is pleasant, praise his name;
his people for his own he takes
and his own peculiar treasure makes.I know the Lord is high in state,
above all gods our Lord is great;
the Lord performs what he decrees,
in heav'n and earth, in depths and seas.
He makes the vapors to ascend
in clouds from earth's remotest end;
the lightnings flash at his command;
he holds the tempest in his hand.Exalt the Lord, his praise proclaim;
all ye his servants, praise his name,
who in the Lord's house ever stand
and humbly serve at his command.
Forever praise and bless his name,
and in the church his praise proclaim;
in Zion is his dwelling place;
praise ye the Lord, show forth his grace.
Prayer of Invocation
*Trinity Hymnal No. 735
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.
*Confession of Faith
The Westminster Shorter Catechism 1–3, p. 869
Q. What is the chief end of man?
A. Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever.Q. What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him?
A. The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him.Q. What do the Scriptures principally teach?
A. The Scriptures principally teach, what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man.
Confession Before a Holy God
Reading of the Law
1 The word of the LORD that came to Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel. 2 When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, “Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the LORD.” 3 So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. 4 And the LORD said to him, “Call his name Jezreel, for in just a little while I will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. 5 And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.” 6 She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the LORD said to him, “Call her name No Mercy, for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all. 7 But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the LORD their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.” 8 When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son. 9 And the LORD said, “Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God.” 10 Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children of the living God.” 11 And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint for themselves one head. And they shall go up from the land, for great shall be the day of Jezreel.
Confession of Sin
Assurance of Pardon
8 The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
9 He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
The Means of Grace
Prayer of Intercession
*Scripture Reading and Text
1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
Sermon
Fellowship and Joy in Jesus
Rev. Kyle Brent
Prayer of Application
*Trinity Hymnal No. 657
In Sweet Communion, Lord, with Thee
In sweet communion, Lord, with thee
I constantly abide;
my hand thou holdest in thine own
to keep me near thy side.Thy counsel through my earthly way
shall guide me and control,
and then to glory afterward
thou wilt receive my soul.Whom have I, Lord, in heav'n but thee,
to whom my thoughts aspire?
And, having thee, on earth is naught
that I can yet desire.Though flesh and heart should faint and fail,
the Lord will ever be
the strength and portion of my heart,
my God eternally.To live apart from God is death,
'tis good his face to seek;
my refuge is the living God,
his praise I long to speak.
Thanksgiving and Blessing
Offering
*Trinity Hymnal No. 644
May the Mind of Christ My Savior
May the mind of Christ my Savior
live in me from day to day,
by his love and pow'r controlling
all I do and say.May the Word of God dwell richly
in my heart from hour to hour,
so that all may see I triumph
only through his pow'r.May the peace of God my Father
rule my life in everything,
that I may be calm to comfort
sick and sorrowing.May the love of Jesus fill me
as the waters fill the sea;
him exalting, self abasing,
this is victory.May his beauty rest upon me
as I seek the lost to win,
and may they forget the channel,
seeing only him.
*Benediction
*Trinity Hymnal No. 731
Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
praise him, all creatures here below;
praise him above, ye heav'ly host;
praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.