SECOND SUNDAY IN ADVENT

Transcription

1 SECOND SUNDAY IN ADVENT December 6, 2015

2 WELCOME Welcome to ICON at First United Methodist Church. We are delighted that you have chosen to worship with us this morning. Founded in 1821, First Church is the oldest Protestant church in the area and the oldest Methodist church in Florida. This historic church, with four Sunday services, has a membership of 3200 and is overflowing with life. We hope you will consider becoming a member of our church family. You may join any Sunday by profession of faith or transfer of membership. VISITOR/NEW MEMBER CLASS We welcome all visitors and new members that are interested in learning more about First Church to an introductory class that consists of four parts. The class assembles at 9:30am in room PH101 in the Perry Home. Today s class, Introduction to First Church gave you an opportunity to ask questions and learn about the history, theology, worship, and membership of this great church. Next week on December 13th, Ministries of First Church is about all the programs and ministries of the church. NURSERY AND CHILDREN S BULLETINS Nursery is available for children up to 5 years old. If you need help locating the nursery, please see an usher for assistance. Also, children s worship bulletins and crayons are available in the lobby. NEXT WEEK AT ICON Join us next week at First Church for the 3rd Sunday in Advent. Dr. Wesley H. Wachob, Senior Pastor, will preach with special guest musicians. Next week s lectionary scripture: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18. We look forward to worshiping with you next week.

3 ORDER OF SERVICE ICON - 11 A.M. ANNOUNCEMENTS Denise Van Atta TRINITY CHIME *CALL TO WORSHIP Blessed be the God of Israel Who has redeemed us. God has raised up a mighty savior for us And remembered the holy covenant. *OPENING SONG Prepare the Way of the Lord Jeremy Riddle *COLLECT Merciful God, who sent your messengers the prophets to preach repentance and prepare the way for our salvation: Give us grace to heed their warnings and forsake our sins, that we may greet with joy the coming of Jesus Christ our Redeemer; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. *SONG OF PRAISE You ll Come LIGHTING OF THE ADVENT CANDLE The Candle of Love Brooke Ligertwood Logan and Caitlyn Bowlds O Come, O Come Emmanuel Traditional REGISTRATION OF ATTENDANCE Please register your attendance on the registration pad on the end of each aisle. If you are visiting with us, please include your address, telephone number and address so that we may welcome you in a more personal way. CHILDREN S SERMON Lisa Bond PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION Take, O Take Me As I Am *GOSPEL LESSON: Luke 3:1-6 SERMON Rev. Scott Grantland

4 PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE OFFERTORY By Our Love Christy Nockels *DOXOLOGY EUCHARIST Til Kingdom Come *CLOSING SONG Great Light of the World Chris Martin Bebo Norman *BENEDICTION *Please Stand LECTIONARY SCRIPTURES FIRST LESSON: MALACHI 3:1-4 Malachi s prophesy of the Messiah and his forerunner. The Messiah will be a comfort to the afflicted and a judge to those who do evil. SECOND LESSON: PHILIPPIANS 1:3-11 Paul expresses his thanks for the faithfulness of the church at Philippi. He declares that the work of grace among them will be fulfilled when Christ returns. GOSPEL LESSON: LUKE 3:1-6 At a particular time and in a particular place, the ministry of John the Baptist comes as a fulfillment of Isaiah s prophecy, The voice of one crying in the wilderness...

5 ANNOUNCEMENTS WEDNESDAY NIGHT DINNER AND ACTIVITIES Join us on Wednesday nights during Advent for a time of fellowship, food, and a special activity. Dinner is from 5:00pm-5:45pm in the Wright Place. This week s menu is Chicken Pot Pie, Collard Greens, Salad, Cornbread, and Dessert. Please make your reservations in the registration pads, by calling the church office at (850) , or online. After dinner at 6:00pm, we will all meet in Wesley Abbey for a special Advent service called A Modern Service of Lessons and Carols. We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday night. GREAT DAY OF GIVING Thank You Thank you to everyone who donated food during the past month and participated in the Great Day of Giving today. Because of your generous help many area families and children will be blessed this season. CHARGE CONFERENCE December 7th, 7:00pm Charge Conference is tomorrow night at 7:00pm in Wesley Abbey. District Superintendent Dr. Timothy Trent will preside at this service and meeting celebrating the ministry of First Church in The whole congregation is invited to attend. CHRISTMAS CONCERT SERIES White Christmas Tonight Advent at First Church is a great time for music. There are three nights of concerts this Advent season and they are all free and open to the public. Join us for each of these great events as we glorify God in song. White Christmas Concert Tonight 5:00pm Main Sanctuary Behold the Lamb of God Dec. 19th 7:00pm Wesley Abbey Sanctuary Choir Concert Dec. 20th 7:30pm Main Sanctuary CHURCH-WIDE CAROLING Wednesday, Dec. 16th All ages, preschool through adults, are invited to join us for an evening of caroling to the homebound. We will meet at 6:00pm in The Wright Place after our fellowship dinner.

6 DID YOU KNOW? Today is the second Sunday of the new church year and the Advent season. Advent is a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the birth of Jesus. There is a lot going on at First Church during Advent. Special Advent/Christmas calendars are available to pick-up this morning. Take some and share them with your family and friends. Let s make this a meaningful Advent season for our congregation. WHO ARE WE? + Cutting Edge: We use new songs, modern musical styles, two huge HD screens, and social networking to bring the gospel of Jesus to our postmodern culture. + Tradition Rich: Unlike most contemporary services we fully embrace our Christian heritage. Our service centers around Holy Communion and finds the ancient liturgy of the early church to be highly relevant. + Art Embracing: We value the creative arts in our congregation. Our service uses visual arts to help deepen our experience of worship. + Mission Minded: We embrace the words of Matthew 5:16 and strive to share our faith, through love, in the community and the world. + Christ Centered: We strive to keep Christ at the center of all we do. Our focus is not so much about making Christ relevant to the world, but making the world relevant to Christ. Our worship is not about us, but about God. WHAT DOES MEAN? ICON is the Greek word for image. Worship at ICON is highly visual and experiential with the large screens, candles and processional cross. The Bible proclaims that we are made in God s image (Genesis 1), but through our sin we have tarnished that image. We believe that Christ is the true image of God (Hebrews 1) and through him God is restoring us to our true image. The Bible says (1 John 3:2), What we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: that when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. Our hope is to be an ICON of Christ.