New Year s Eve Worship December 31, 2018
REFLECTIONS ON THE CHRISTIAN LIFE FOR THE NEW YEAR December 31, 2018 Father, Let Me Dedicate Christian Worship, 75 v. 1, 2 P: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. C: Amen. REFLECTIONS ON BAPTISM P: The Bible tells us of the many blessings our Lord has given us through the washing of Baptism. Consider those expressed in the following passages. Men: Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off for all whom the Lord our God will call. (Acts 2:38-39) Women: He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:5-7) Lord, Help Us Ever to Retain Christian Worship, 514 v. 2-4 REFLECTIONS ON CONFIRMATION P: The key to keeping our vows of faithfulness in Jesus is continuing in God s Word to the end of life. Consider these words of encouragement. All: Jesus said, If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:31-32) Women: Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. (Matthew 24:12-13) 2
Men: Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. (Revelation 2:10) P: We can sum it up by saying, Remain in Jesus and his Word and in the joy of salvation which He has secured for all through His life, death and resurrection. My Maker, Be with Me Christian Worship, 598 v. 1 REFLECTIONS ON MARRIAGE AND CHRISTIAN LOVE P: Whether married or not, we live in a world made up of others. We live in relationships with others and in those relationships two key words need daily application love and forgiveness. Men: Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. He who loves his wife loves himself. (Ephesians 5:21, 25) Women: Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord. As the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. (Ephesians 5:21, 28) All: Jesus said: A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must also love one another. By this, all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. (John 13:34-35) P: Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32) Your Love, O God, Has Called Us Here Christian Worship, 601 v. 3 OLD TESTAMENT READING Nehemiah 9:32-35, 38 Now therefore, O our God, the great, mighty and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love, do not let all this hardship seem trifling in your eyes the hardship that has come upon us, upon our kings and leaders, upon our priests and prophets, upon our fathers and all your people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until today. 3
33 In all that has happened to us, you have been just; you have acted faithfully, while we did wrong. 34 Our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers did not follow your law; they did not pay attention to your commands or the warnings you gave them. 35 Even while they were in their kingdom, enjoying your great goodness to them in the spacious and fertile land you gave them, they did not serve you or turn from their evil ways 38 In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are affixing their seals to it. Commentary Psalm 90 Christian Worship, page 99 EPISTLE James 4:7-17 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Grieve, mourn and wail, change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up. 11 Brothers, to not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgement on it. 12 There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save or destroy. But you who are you to judge your neighbor? 13 Now listen, you who say, Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money. 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15 Instead, you ought to say, If it is the Lord s will, we will live and do this or that. 16 As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. 17 Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn t do it, sins. Commentary The old Year Now Has Passed Away Christian Worship, 71 v. 4 4
GOSPEL Matthew 7:24-29 Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them to practice is like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash. 28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law. Commentary Jesus Priceless Treasure Christian Worship, 349 v. 1-3 REFLECTIONS ON THE TIMES OF LIFE JOYOUS AND DIFFICULT P: Solomon, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, gives us a capsule summary of the times of people s lives. The key to a successful life is knowing and trusting that in all things, we are more than conquerors through Christ who loved us. All: There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. Women: And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 5
Men: I trust in you, O LORD; I say, You are my God. 15 My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me. P: For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Help Us Lord, For Now We Enter Christian Worship, 70 v. 1, 2 REFLECTIONS ON DEATH AND ETERNAL LIFE P: Only the Christian can speak of death and eternal life in one breath and call both of them good because of Jesus Christ. Let s hear and apply what God s Word says: All: Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. P: Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this? All: Yes Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world. P: We can therefore live in peace and die in hope trusting in the Word and promise of Jesus when he says, Because I live, you also will live. Now Rest Beneath Night s Shadow Christian Worship, 587 v. 1, 3 REFLECTIONS ON OUR PURPOSE IN LIFE P: The purpose of our lives in Christ could be summed up with the Words Grow and Go. Keep growing in God s Word, and keep going to others with God s Word. 6
Men: But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Women: But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. P: Jesus said, Behold, I am coming soon. Like the Golden Sun Ascending Christian Worship, 147 v. 4, 5 REFLECTIONS ON THE LORD S SUPPER P: Whether in church or at home, each day you give us the freedom to approach your throne of grace to find love and forgiveness. At the Lord s Supper, you give us real elements to eat and drink that assure us of that same love and forgiveness. C: We are confident of your forgiveness by eating and drinking the very things that won our salvation, namely Jesus body and blood. P: St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians concerning the unity between those who partake in this precious sacrament when he said, because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf. C: When we receive Holy Communion together with others, we are confessing our unity of faith in our Lord Jesus. P: Finally, receiving the Lord s Supper not only gives us personal assurance of God s forgiveness, but it also gives us strength and encouragement to witness to the unbelieving world. C: Therefore, we gladly come to the Lord s table often, encouraging each other in our Christian faith and lives, and proclaiming the message of Christ s love until he returns. PRAYERS 7
LORD S PRAYER Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen. WORDS OF INSTITUTION DISTRIBUTION Soul Adorn Yourself with Gladness Christian Worship, 311 v. 1-7 SONG OF THANKSGIVING Christian Worship, 311 v. 8 COMMUNION PRAYER BENEDICTION Now the Light Has Gone Away Christian Worship, 593 There will be a door offering as you leave the church tonight. Thank you for worshipping with us. Pastor: Rev. Tim Kuske Pianist: Grace Underwood Tonight s bulletin is sponsored to the glory of Christ our newborn King wishing all of St. John s family of believers a blessed New Year, from Jim and Sandy Allen. 8