Worship
for the Lord’s Day
May 2,
2021
A Note before we begin
this day’s worship:
Unfortunately, I had to leave town for a family emergency, but
we will have coverage for our regular worship services at (Olivet Presbyterian
Church, West Elizabeth – 9:45am and Bethesda United Presbyterian Church,
Elizabeth – 11:15am) by Rev. Bob Ruefle with our previous safety precautions in
place.
As always, you can
click on the highlighted portions below which will open a YouTube clip of the
songs, but there is no video of my short sermon”ette”, this morning.
Let’s begin:
Prelude
Clint Mansell’s Lux Aeterna from Requiem for a Dream.
This is one of my
favorite pieces. It is hauntingly
beautiful and often fills my head when I’m in a melancholy mood.
Call to Worship
L: Our praise rings out before the great
congregation.
P: May all the people eat and be
satisfied. May our hearts live
forever.
L: May all who live, even at the ends of the
earth, remember and turn to the Lord.
P: May all the families of the nations bow
down in worship.
L: God rules over the nations and we shall
live unto God’s great name.
P: The future generations shall be told about
the Lord.
L: We will proclaim God’s deliverance, saying
aloud what God has done.
P: Let us worship God.
Hymn Holy,
Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty
Prayer of Confession
God
of life and death, we confess that sometimes we are not alive to the
possibilities You offer. In the midst of
pain, unfairness, and fear, we find little reason for hope. We feel despair or blame others, but we do
not turn to You for help. Forgive
us. Show us how to share the new life
You offer, through Jesus Christ. AMEN.
Words of Assurance
L: Jesus said, “These things I have spoken to
you, that My joy may be in you,
and that your joy may be full.” Your
sins are forgiven, and your future made
new.
P: Thanks be to God, AMEN!
Affirmation of Faith – Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God the
Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ His only Son
our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost; born of the virgin Mary;
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended
into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead: He ascended into heaven
and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He shall come to judge the quick
and the dead. I believe in the Holy
Ghost; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of
sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. AMEN
Pastoral Prayer
This day, we offer up in prayer…
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth
as it is in heaven. Give us this day our
daily bread. Forgive us our debts as we
forgive our debtors. And lead us not into
temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. AMEN.
Scripture Readings
Old Testament: Psalm
22:25-31
25From
you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will pay before those
who fear him.
26The poor shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall
praise the Lord.
May your hearts live forever!
27All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord; and all the
families of the nations shall worship before him.
28For dominion belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the
nations.
29To him, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust, and I shall live for him.
30Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about
the Lord,
31and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn, saying that
he has done it.
New Testament: 1 John 4:7-21
7Beloved, let us love one
another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows
God. 8Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9God’s
love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so
that we might live through him. 10In this
is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the
atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11Beloved,
since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. 12No one
has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is
perfected in us. 13By this we know that we abide
in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.
14And we have seen and do testify that the Father has sent his Son
as the Savior of the world. 15God
abides in those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and they abide in
God. 16So we have known and believe the love that God has for us. God
is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.
17Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have
boldness on the day of judgment, because as he is, so are we in this
world. 18There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for
fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in
love. 19We love because he first loved us. 20Those
who say, “I love God,” and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those
who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom
they have not seen. 21The commandment we have from
him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.
Sermon – Love
One Another
This past month has been a
difficult one for my family and I’ve had to be away for much of the month,
spending a good portion of the time in hospitals, doctor offices, and the cancer
center. During that time I’ve had to set
aside other priorities to focus on my sister’s health. As I set aside my own agendas for the day, I’ve
had concentrated opportunities to focus on others – to really “see” others. The world is not a perfect place and we are
not perfect people, BUT there are many who go above and beyond to be kind. As we go about our daily routines sometimes
we miss it.
Today’s scripture passage is an
extended message from John’s earlier chapter that we read last week. He emphasizes, once again, the real focus of
the gospel which is to LOVE ONE ANOTHER because love comes directly, uniquely,
and abundantly from God.
I was heartened all month by
the kindness of strangers and friends alike; the simple gesture of a held door,
a kind word, the offer of food, the doing of tasks, the flowers that came, the
cards that held meaning, the prayers being said, and the ever present “checking
in” to see how we were all doing.
Here are some examples of
kindness that came our way this month:
I had picked up my mother from
the airport to come see my sister in ICU and we needed to stop to use the
bathroom on our way to the hospital. We
stopped at a gas station and the clerk behind the counter couldn’t have been
kinder, simply offering words of comfort and care on our way.
Three weeks ago when we first
got word that my sister’s cancer had returned, an upstairs neighbor came with
mounds of food, with the promise of more, so that we could concentrate on Joy’s
care and not worry about having to cook.
Another neighbor helped get my
sister down and back up the stairs when she was too weak to walk.
The gentleman in the hospital that
brought my sister’s food came each day with a smile and a song as he delivered the
meals.
The young man at a nearby
store who offered to bring out a chair from the back office for my mom to sit
in when I had accidently locked my keys in the car (UGH!) while we waited for
AAA to come.
The host at an AirBnB who I
contacted to see if the location was close enough and large enough for two of
us to stay in who then said a prayer with me when he found out why I was in
town. Unfortunately, his space and
location was not ideal and I chose another, but he contacted me later in the
week (me, a total stranger) to see how we were doing.
Friends who texted me asking
how Joy and the rest of us were doing, offering their own prayers of comfort,
strength, and peace.
All of these created moments that
brightened the day. We NEED those
moments, not just in times of crisis but all the time, throughout the day, the
weeks, the months and years. And we also
need to be the ones that offer them. To
be honest, I’m not always positive and happy.
I’m not always kind. I’m not
immune from offering a snarky remark or a harsh criticism. Thankfully, I mostly do it to those I love
because I know they will understand and forgive me. But I also realized in this past month that I
need to work at being kinder, more genuine, more loving and to care for my
fellow journeyers. We are all dealing
with something and this world is harsh enough.
Let us love one another! AMEN
Hymn Seek Ye First
Benediction
Nourished by the Shepherd’s abundant love, go forth to walk
in the paths of righteousness. Love one
another in truth and action. May God’s
abundant blessings abide in you forever. AMEN.
Postlude – Presto from Vivaldi’s Storm
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