Westminster Presbyterian Church Sunday, February 18, 2018 WPC exists to develop in ourselves and others a passion for the glory of God and the preeminence of Christ in all of life and in all the world, as revealed in the infallible, inerrant Word of God alone.
The Lord s Day February 18, 2018 10:15 a.m. The Prelude Greetings and Announcements The Call to Worship May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, that your way may be known on earth, your saving power among all nations. Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you! Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you! (from Psalm 67) * Song May the Peoples Praise You Getty You have called us out of darkest night, into Your glorious light, That we may sing the wonders of the risen Christ. May our every breath retell the grace that broke into our strife With boundless love and deepest joy, with endless life. May the peoples praise You, Let the nations be glad! All Your blessing comes that we may praise, may praise the name of Jesus All the earth is Yours and all within, each harvest is Your own, And from Your hand we give to You, to make Christ known. May the seeds of mercy grow in us for those who have not heard, May songs of praise build lives of grace to spread Your Word. This our holy priv lege to declare your praises and Your Name To every nation, tribe, and tongue, your church proclaim. Holy, Holy, is the Lord Almighty! Worthy, worthy is the Lamb who was slain. Holy, Holy is the Lord Almighty! All creation praise Your glorious Name. x2 2
Focus on Missions * Song O How the Grace of God Amazes Me Sibomana/ Smith O how the grace of God Amazes me! It loosed me from my bonds and set me free! What made it happen so? His own will, this much I know, Set me, as now I show, at liberty My God has chosen me, though one of naught, to sit beside my King in heaven s court. Hear what my Lord has done: O, the love that made him run To meet his erring son! This has God wrought. Come now, the whole of me, eyes, ears, and voice. Join me, creation all, with joyful noise; Praise him who broke the chain, holding me in sin s domain And set me free again! Sing and rejoice! Not for my righteousness, for I have none, But for his mercy s sake, Jesus, God s Son, Suffered on Calvary s tree, crucified with thieves was he Great was his grace to me, His wayward one. And when I think of how, at Calvary, He bore sin s penalty instead of me, Amazed, I wonder why He, the sinless One, should die For one so vile as I; my Savior he! Now all my heart s desire is to abide in him, my Savior dear, in him to hide. My shield and buckler He, covering and protecting me; From Satan s darts I ll be safe at His side. Lord Jesus, hear my prayer, Your grace impart; when evil thoughts arise through Satan s art, O, drive them all away, and you do, from day to day, Keep me beneath Your sway, King of my heart Praise him who broke the chain, holding me in sin s domain And set me free again! Sing and rejoice! 3
Reading from Westminster Confession of Faith 20.1,3 20.1 The liberty which Christ hath purchased for believers under the gospel consists in their freedom from the guilt of sin, the condemning wrath of God, the curse of the moral law; and, in their being delivered from this present evil world, bondage to Satan, and dominion of sin; from the evil of afflictions, the sting of death, the victory of the grave, and everlasting damnation; as also, in their free access to God, and their yielding obedience unto him, not out of slavish fear, but a childlike love and willing mind. All which were common also to believers under the law. But, under the new testament, the liberty of Christians is further enlarged, in their freedom from the yoke of the ceremonial law, to which the Jewish church was subjected; and in greater boldness of access to the throne of grace, and in fuller communications of the free Spirit of God, than believers under the law did ordinarily partake of. 20.3 Thy who, upon pretense of Christian liberty, do practice any sin, or cherish any lust, do thereby destroy the end of Christian liberty, which is, that being delivered out of the hands of our enemies, we might serve the Lord without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life. Song Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone) Tomlin Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me I once was lost, but now I m found, was blind, but now I see. Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved How precious did that grace appear the hour I first believed. My chains are gone, I ve been set free! My God, my Savior has ransomed me And like a flood His mercy reigns, unending love, amazing grace. The Lord has promised good to me, His word my hope secures He will my shield and portion be as long as life endures x2 The earth shall soon dissolve like snow, the sun forbear to shine But God, who called me here below will be forever mine, Will be forever mine, You are forever mine. Offertory Prayer, Music, & Offering (The Member/Guest book: Please sign and pass to others on your row. Note the names of any guests or people you do not know and greet them later.) 4
Song My Heart Is Filled with Thankfulness Getty My heart is filled with thankfulness to Him who bore my pain; who plumbed the depths of my disgrace and gave me life again. Who crushed my curse of sinfulness and clothed me in His light and wrote His law of righteousness with pow r upon my heart. My heart is filled with thankfulness to Him who walks beside; who floods my weaknesses with strength and causes fears to fly. Whose every promise is enough for every step I take; sustaining me with arms of love and crowning me with grace. My heart is filled with thankfulness to Him who reigns above; whose wisdom is my perfect peace, whose every thought is love. For everyday I have on earth is given by the King. So I will give my life, my all, to love and follow Him. To love and follow Him. Dismissal of the Children (ages 3yrs thru 5 th Grade at parents discretion) A Pastoral Prayer * The Reading of God s Word Galatians 5:1-6,13-25 The Proclamation of the Word Of Christian Liberty and Liberty of Conscience Bill Tyson, pastor * Song Before You I Kneel (A Worker s Prayer) Getty Before You I kneel, my Master and Maker; to offer the work of my hands. For this is the day you ve given Your servant; I will rejoice and be glad. For the strength I have to live and breathe, for each skill Your grace has given me; For the needs and opportunities that will glorify Your great Name. Before You I kneel and ask for Your goodness to cover the work of my hands. For patience and peace to shape all my labor; Your grace for thorns in my path. Flow within me like a living stream; wear away the stones of pride and greed, Till Your ways are dwelling deep in me and a harvest of life is grown. Before You we kneel, our Master and Maker; establish the work of our hands. And order our steps to seek first Your Kingdom in ev ry small and great task. May we live the Gospel of Your grace; serve Your purpose in our fleeting days; Then our lives will bring eternal praise and all glory to Your great Name. 5
* The Benediction May God the Father, according to the riches of his glory grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Amen. (adapted from Ephesians 3:14-19) For Your Calendar: Sunday, February 18, 4-7 p.m. NO NextGen Youth Group (Youth Retreat at Blue Lake) Monday, February 19 OFFICE CLOSED Presidents Day Wednesday, February 21, 4-6 p.m. Kids Club Thursday, February 22, 6 a.m. The Carpenter s Apprentices (Men s Bible Study at The Breakfast Place on Beal Pkwy) Wednesday, February 21, 9:30 a.m. Ladies Bible Study VISITORS: We are glad you are here with us today and trust you find us warm and friendly. We hope you will come again! During the service the Friendship Pads will be passed to you. Please fill it out completely to help us get to know you. If at some point you would like to consider joining WPC please so indicate on the Friendship Pad or contact the Pastor or one of the Elders. If you are a first-time visitor, please pick up a Visitor Folder on the table in the entrance foyer. 6
WPC Announcements Join the Missions Committee: The Missions Committee needs new members, and especially a treasurer. Please pray about joining this group for monthly meetings and involvement with our missionaries. Contact Arleen Blackstone if you would like more information. Pray for our Pastoral Search Committee: The Pulpit Committee has narrowed our initial search, and we have notified the Session and Diaconate that we have started the final Candidating process. One of the next steps in this process is an extended face-to-face meeting with the Session. We expect to conclude this step by the end of February at which time we will communicate again with the congregation. Your prayers have been a great source of comfort, and we plead that you continue praying with even greater fervor. Pray for our Missions Conference March 9-11: The speakers will be Rev. David and Marcia Jones MTW Europe, and Matthew and Diana Soerens, US Director of Church Mobilization, World Relief National Coordinator, Evangelical Immigration Table. Watch for itinerary. To join the Missions Prayer Chain, email ablacks657@aol.com 7