Epiclesis An Ancient-Future Faith Community Liturgy June 14, 2015 (Third Sunday after Pentecost) GATHERING Leader: Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens; praise Him in the heights! R: Praise Him, all His angels; praise Him, all His host! Praise Him, sun and moon; praise Him, all stars of light! L: Praise Him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens! R: Let them praise the name of the LORD, for He commanded and they were created. L: He established them forever and ever; He fixed their bounds, which cannot be passed. Who is like You, O God: Majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? Your faithfulness surrounds You. R: Praise the LORD from the earth, all creatures and all nature! L: Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth! Young men and women alike, old and young together! For You are the glory of their strength, and by Your favor our horn is exalted. Let them praise the name of the LORD, for His name alone is exalted; His glory is above earth and heaven. He has raised up a horn for His people, praise for all His faithful. Praise the LORD! from Psalms 89 and 148
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation! O my soul, praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation! All ye who hear, now to His temple draw near; Join me in glad adoration! Praise to the Lord, who o er all things so wondrously reigneth, Shelters thee under His wings, yea, so gently sustaineth! Hast thou not seen how all thy longings have been Granted in what He ordaineth? Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee; Surely His goodness and mercy here daily attend thee. Ponder anew what the Almighty can do, If with His love He befriend thee. Words: Joachim Neander; Transl. by Catherine Winkworth. Hymn tune: LOBE DEN HERREN, 1665. INVOCATION Prayers of welcome and praise Praise to the Lord, the Almighty (verse 4) Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore Him! All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him. Let the Amen sound from His people again; Gladly for aye we adore Him. You Are Beautiful Source of life to wood and stream, Sovereign Lord and gentle King, More than we could ever dream: You are beautiful. Father to the fatherless, Healer of our brokenness, How You fill our emptiness: You are beautiful. 2
Chorus Jesus, You are beautiful; There is none to compare with You. Jesus, You are beautiful; And you show Your love to me, And it gives me grace to see: You are everything my heart desires. You are beautiful. Son of God upon a cross, Tasting death for all of us, Reaching out when we were lost: You are beautiful. Risen Lamb upon the throne, Roaring Lion coming soon, Every eye will see it's true: You are beautiful. 2000 Integrity s Hosanna! Music; Gary Sadler CCLI License # 3097801 PROFESSION OF FAITH Let us together profess the faith of the church of all ages in these words from the epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians: The word of the Lord: We believe that Christ died for all, so that we who live might no longer live for ourselves, but for Him who for our sake died and was raised again. Therefore, since we are in Christ, we are new creations; the old has passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, That is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, And He has entrusted to us the word of reconciliation. God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. from 2 Corinthians 5:14-21 3
PRAYERS OF CONFESSION How blessed are those who fear the LORD, who find great delight in His commands. How blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord. How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, who seek Him with all their heart. Psalm 112:1. 119:1-2 [Silence] Lord Jesus Christ, whose will all things obey: Pardon what I have done and grant that I, a sinner, may sin no more. Lord, I believe that, though I do not deserve it, You can cleanse me from all my sins. Lord, I know that man looks upon the face, but You see the heart. [Silent confessions] Send Your spirit into my inmost being, to take possession of my soul and body. Without You I cannot be saved; with You to protect me, I long for Your salvation. And now I ask You for Your salvation. And now I ask You for wisdom; deign of Your great goodness to help and defend me. Guide my heart, almighty God, that I may remember Your presence day and night. Amen. a prayer attributed to the Desert Fathers, 5 th 6 th centuries Purify My Heart Purify my heart, Touch me with Your cleansing fire; Take me to the cross, Your holiness is my desire. Breathe Your life in me, Kindle a love That flows from Your throne. Oh, purify my heart, Purify my heart. CCLI Song #1314323; 1993 Maranatha Praise, Inc.; Jeff Nelson 4
ASSURANCE OF PARDON This is God s faithful promise of His love and deliverance: The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; And I am saved from my enemies. In my distress I called upon the LORD; and cried to my God for help. From His temple He heard my voice, and my cry to Him reached His ears. He brought me out into a broad place; He rescued me, because He delighted in me. Psalm 18:2-3, 6, 19 TIME OF OFFERING Words and prayers of thanksgiving and praise My Lips will Praise You My lips will praise You, for You are holy. My voice will ever rise before Your throne. My heart will love You, for You are lovely, And You have called me to become Your own. I am Your own, And I will worship You alone. I am Your own, I am Your child. I am Your own, And I will worship at Your throne. I am Your own, And I will love You. CCLI Song #2552912 1998 Ariose Music/Mountain Spring Music. Twila Paris. 5
THE WORD 1 Samuel 15:34-16:13 THE TABLE Remembering the Body of Christ The Lord be with you! And also with you! Lift up your hearts. We lift them up to the Lord. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right to give Him thanks and praise. The Lord s Prayer (sung) Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heav n. Provide each day our daily needs; Forgive our sins as we forgive others wrongs; And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, forever and ever; And Thine is the power, forever and ever; And Thine is the glory, now and forever, Amen, amen, amen. Setting: Ellen Koehler Copyright 2010 Ellen Koehler. All Rights Reserved. 6
Everywhere Oh, the way the sea crashes on the shore, And with endless praise, glorifies Your name; Oh, the mountains green stand with faithful feet, Raised to point their song, and declare You King. Chorus: I can see You everywhere, All around me, in the air. You surround my heart with songs of rare belief, Creation groans, and leans on You. How I wish that I could, too. Teach me more to be like You. You wrap Yourself in light, and You ride upon the wind. You cause the sun to shine, and obey to rise again. Of You I stand in awe, and fail with words to say, All of what You are is why I want to stay. Chorus You see the heart within, and not the outward view; You fill my horn with oil, and set me out again. How can I rise to go unless I cease to grieve? Oh, Spirit of the Lord, come show me how to see. Chorus 3: I can see You everywhere, All around me, in the air. You surround my heart with songs of rare belief, Creation groans, and leans on You. How I wish that I could, too. Teach me more to see like You. Rita Springer. 2004 Kindred Joy Music. Third verse lyrics and final chorus line: Chris Alford. 2015 SENDING FORTH The Life of the Body 7
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty (verse 4) Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in me adore Him! All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him. Let the Amen sound from His people again; Gladly for aye we adore Him. Words: Joachim Neander; Transl. Catherine Winkworth. Hymn tune: LOBE DEN HERREN, 1665. Benediction: Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world, and whose light enables us to see: Grant that Your people, illumined by Your word and Table, may shine with the radiance of Christ's glory. Amen. And as we are sent forth in His name, grant that we may more and more see as You see; and fill us, we pray, with the oil of Your Spirit as we walk out our baptisms in the world, loving and serving the Lord. Amen. Thanks be to God. Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! A thought about worship from the Ancient Fathers No one can see the face, that is, the appearance of God s wisdom, and live. For all who strive to love God with all their heart, soul, and mind longs to study this revelation. Through its study, those who love their neighbors encourage them as much as they can. All the Law and the prophets hang on these two commandments.... Therefore this appearance whisks away every rational soul with the desire for it, and makes the soul even more pure and eager for it. For souls become purer the more they rise to spiritual things. They rise more to spiritual things the more they die to fleshly things. So, while we are absent from the Lord and walk by faith instead of sight, we should see the back parts or flesh of Christ. By that very faith, we stand on the solid foundation and rock of faith and we observe it from a safe watch tower.... For we come to love to see the face of Christ even more as we recognize how much Christ first loved us in His flesh. Augustine Lectionary for next week: 1 Samuel 17:1-18:16; Psalm 9:9-20; Psalm 133; Job 38:1-11; Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32; 2 Corinthians 6:1-13; Mark 4:35-41 Epiclesis: An Ancient-Future Faith Community www.epiclesis.org Info line: (916)572-9113 Sunday mornings at The Carmichael Chapel, 4600 Winding Way (Corner of Winding Way and Pasadena), Sacramento, CA 95841. Informal gathering: 10:00 AM; Worship at 10:30 AM. 2015 E.K 8