God Is Partial Again and again throughout biblical history, God is partial to caring for the poor, the weak, and the outcast. Which is why, perhaps, Jesus response to the Syrophoenician woman takes us by surprise: Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children s food and throw it to the dogs (Mark 7:27). The Syrophoenician woman acts in faith. She engages Jesus with what she believes to be true about him: that through him God s mercy will extend even to her. Despite the distinctions that separate them (including race, gender, and religion), she believes Jesus is a Savior who has the power to heal all people and that she, although not a Jew, is a member of the household of God. The second reading, from James, reminds hearers then and now that the Christian community s actions are to be shaped by God s partiality. God has chosen the poor to be rich in faith. While the world values the rich, the poor are God s own treasure, made honored guests and royal heirs through baptism. The community is called to a partiality based on God s values, not the world s. The waters of baptism wash away all distinctions. Like streams breaking forth in the desert, these waters surprise us with mercy in unexpected places. These waters open our eyes, unstop our ears, and loose our tongues to see, hear, and speak God s partiality for the poor, the weak, and the outcast. Baptized into Christ s death and resurrection, the Spirit fills us with faith a faith active in showing mercy that knows no limits. Around the table, rich and poor, haughty and humble, all who gather receive a feast fit for the family of God. All are honored and all are fed, because the Lord is the maker of them all. Please be sure your cell phone has been turned offf. Thank you for being considerate! Awesome God GATHERING When He rolls up His sleeves He ain't just puttin' on the ritz Our God is an awesome God There is thunder in His footsteps And lightning in His fists Our God is an awesome God And the Lord wasn't joking When He kicked 'em out of Eden It wasn't for no reason That He shed His blood His return is very close And so you'd better be believin' That our God is an awesome God 1300 East 10 th Street Sioux Falls SD 57103-1796 605-336-3597; www.eastsidelc.org PENTECOST 16 September 9, 2018 11:00 am Our God is an awesome God He reigns from heaven above With wisdom pow'r and love Our God is an awesome God When the sky was starless In the void of the night Our God is an awesome God He spoke into the darkness And created the light Our God is an awesome God Judgment and wrath He poured out on Sodom Mercy and grace He gave us at the cross I hope that we have not Too quickly forgotten 12
That our God is an awesome God x2 I HAVE A HOPE CCLI Song No. 41099 1988 BMG Songs, Inc. (Admin. by BMG Music Publishing) Rich Mullins For use solely with the SongSelect Terms of Use. All rights Reserved. www.ccli.com CCLI License No. 1552805 I have a hope I have a future I have a destiny that is yet awaiting me My life's not over a new beginning's just begun I have a hope I have this hope God has a plan it's not to harm me But it's to prosper me and to hear me when I call He intercedes for me working all things for my good Though trials may come we have this hope And where You are Lord I am free Holiness is Christ in me Where You are Lord I am free Holiness is Christ in me (Bridge) So teach my song to rise to You When temptation comes my way And when I cannot stand I'll fall on You Jesus You're my hope and stay And when I cannot stand I'll fall on You Jesus You're my hope and stay 2 Lord I need You oh I need You Ev'ry hour I need You My one defense my righteousness Oh God how I need You My one defense my righteousness Oh God how I need You CCLI Song # 5925687 Christy Nockels Daniel Carson Jesse Reeves Kristian Stanfill Matt Maher 2011 sixsteps Music (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing) Sweater Weather Music (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing) Thankyou Music (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing) Valley Of Songs Music (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing) worshiptogether.com songs (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing) For use solely with the SongSelect Terms of Use. All rights reserved. www.ccli.com CCLI License # 1552805 I will yet praise Him my great Redeemer I will yet stand up and give Him glory with my life He takes my darkness and He turns it into light I will yet praise Him my Lord my God Verse 3 My God is for me He's not against me So tell me whom then tell me whom then shall I fear He has prepared for me great works He'll help me to complete I have a hope I have this hope Verse 4 Goodness and mercy they're gonna follow me And I'll forever dwell in the house of my great King No eye has ever seen all He's preparing there for me Though trials may come I have this hope Bridge x 3 There's still hope for me today 2 11
HYMN #504 A Mighty Fortress is Our God THE BLESSING P The body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ strengthen you and keep you in his grace. C Amen PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION P Holy and compassionate God, C in bread and wine you give us gifts that form us to be humble and courageous. May your words come to life in our serving and in our witness, that we might speak a living voice of healing and justice to all the world, through Jesus Christ, our rock and our redeemer. Amen BENEDICTION P God, creator of all things, speaking reformation into being; Jesus Christ, savior of the world, raising the dead; Holy Spirit, living voice, calling and enlightening the church: Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever. C Amen. THE DISMISSAL P Go in peace and serve the Lord. C We Will! Thanks be to God! Lord I Need You Lord I come I confess Bowing here I find my rest And without You I fall apart You're the one that guides my heart 1 Lord I need You oh I need You Ev'ry hour I need You My one defense my righteousness Oh God how I need You Where sin runs deep Your grace is more Where grace is found is where You are 10 For the God of Heaven loves me (Ending) I will yet praise Him, my Lord, My God I will yet praise Him, my Lord, My God CCLI Song # 5087587 Tommy Walker 2007 Doulos Publishing (Admin. by Maranatha! Music) For use solely with the SongSelect Terms of Use. All rights reserved. www.ccli.com CCLI License # 1552805 WELCOME - ANNOUNCEMENTS ORDER OF CONFESSION AND FORGIVENESS P Blessed be the + holy Trinity, the One who fashions us, the One who heals us, the One God who reforms us again and again. C Amen. P Let us confess our sin, calling for God's transforming power. Silence for reflection and self examination. P Source of all life, C we confess that we have not allowed your grace to set us free. We fear that we are not good enough. We hear your word of love freely given to us, yet we expect others to earn it. We turn the church inward, rather than moving it outward. Forgive us. Stir us. Reform us to be a church powered by love, willing to speak for what is right, act for what is just, and seek the healing of your whole creation. Amen. P God hears our cry and sends the Spirit to change us and to empower our lives in the world. Our sins are forgiven, God s love is unconditional, and we are raised up as God s people who will always be made new, in the name of Jesus Christ. C Amen. Thanks be to God! God Of Wonders 1 God of wonders beyond our galaxy You are holy holy The universe declares Your majesty You are holy holy Lord of heaven and earth Lord of heaven and earth Lord of heaven and earth 3
Lord of all creation Of water earth and sky The heavens are Your tabernacle Glory to the Lord on high Early in the morning I will celebrate the light When I stumble in the darkness I will call Your name by night 2 God of wonders beyond our galaxy You are holy holy Precious Lord reveal Your heart to me Father hold me hold me The universe declares Your majesty You are holy holy (ENDING) Hallelujah to the Lord of heaven and earth Hallelujah to the Lord of heaven and earth Hallelujah to the Lord of heaven and earth CCLI Song No. 3118757 2000 New Spring Storm Boy Music Meaux Mercy (Admin. by Brentwood-Benson Music Publishing, Inc.) (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing) (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing) Marc Byrd Steve Hindalong For use solely with the SongSelect Terms of Use. All rights Reserved. www.ccli.com CCLI License No. 1552805 THE APOSTOLIC GREETING P The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. THE PRAYER OF THE DAY P The Lord be with you. P Let us pray. P Gracious God, throughout the ages you transform sickness into health and death into life. Open us to the power of your presence, and make us a people ready to proclaim your promises to the whole world, through Jesus Christ, our healer and Lord. C Amen. FIRST READING: Isaiah 35:4-7a These verses are a word of hope to the exiles in Babylon. Chapter 34 portrays God s vengeance on Edom, Israel s age-old enemy, which makes the path from Babylon to Zion safe for the exiles return. The desert itself will flow with water to give drink to the returning exiles. 4 Say to those who are of a fearful heart, Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God. He will come with vengeance, with terrible recompense. He will come and save you. 5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; 6 then the 4 THE OFFERING PRAYER P Blessed are you, O God, C maker of all things. Through your goodness you have blessed us with these gifts; our selves, our time, and our possessions. Use us, and what we have gathered, in feeding the world with your love, through the one who gave himself for us, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen HOLY COMMUNION P The Lord be with you. P Lift up your hearts. C We lift them to the Lord. P Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. C It is right to give him thanks and praise. THE WORDS OF INSTITUTION THE LORD S PRAYER P Let us pray with confidence in the words our Savior gave us: C 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. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen. THE DISTRIBUTION All baptized Christians are welcome to the Lord s Supper. Please fijill out a registration card and hand it to the usher. We will gladly commune anyone in their seat if they are unable to come forward for communion. Gluten-free communion wafers are available upon request. 9
And there will be an end to these troubles But until that day comes Still I will praise You Still I will praise You x2 Oh no You never let go Through the calm and through the storm Oh no You never let go In ev'ry high and ev'ry low Oh no You never let go Lord You never let go of me Beth Redman and Matt Redman - CCLI# 4674166: Copyright 2005 Thankyou Music THE PRAYERS OF GOD S PEOPLE (Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer) WE SHARE GOD S PEACE P Sisters and brothers, rejoice. Mend your ways, encourage one another, agree with one another, live in peace. P The peace of the Lord be with you always. THE OFFERING We give with joy in our hearts, we give and sing joyfully. We give because we know the amazing ways God works through our congregation to make a diffference in the community and around the world. Simply scan this QR code to give online. OFFERTORY THE OFFERTORY RESPONSE Give It All Away All of my plans all of my dreams, I lay them down before Your feet All of my time all that was mine, I now submit to Your design 'Cause You are the One Who can make my life complete You are the One Who can give light to my feet You are the One and only One Who dared to give it all away for me You dared to give it all away for me 8 lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy. For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; 7a the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water. L The Word of the Lord! C Thanks be to God! PSALM 146 (read responsively) 1 Hallelujah! Praise the LORD, O my soul! 2 I will praise the LORD as long as I live; will sing praises to my God while I have my being. 3 Put not your trust in rulers, in mortals in whom there is no help. 4 When they breathe their last, they return to earth, and in that day their thoughts perish. 5 Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help, whose hope is in the LORD their God; 6 who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them; who keeps promises forever; 7 who gives justice to those who are oppressed, and food to those who hunger. The LORD sets the captive free. 8 The LORD opens the eyes of the blind; the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous. 9 The LORD cares for the stranger; the LORD sustains the orphan and widow, but frustrates the way of the wicked. 10 The LORD shall reign forever, your God, O Zion, throughout all generations. Hallelujah! SECOND READING: James 2:1-10 [11-13] 14-17 Faithful Christians do not show partiality to the rich and powerful of the world, especially at the expense of the poor and weak. Likewise, faith does not pay mere lip-service to God s will. Instead, a living Christian faith expresses itself in acts of compassion and mercy for those in need. 1 My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? 2 For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, 3 and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, Have a seat here, please, while to the one who is poor you say, Stand there, or, Sit at my feet, 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? 7 Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you? 8 You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, You shall 5
love your neighbor as yourself. 9 But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. [ 11 For the one who said, You shall not commit adultery, also said, You shall not murder. Now if you do not commit adultery but if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. 13 For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.] 14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill, and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. L The Word of the Lord! C Thanks be to God! THE ALLELUIA VERSE Halle Halle la la la Halle Halle la la la Halle Halle la la lelujah (Repeat) HOLY GOSPEL: Mark 7:24-37 P The Gospel according to Mark the 7 th Chapter C Glory to you, O Lord In Mark s gospel, encounters with women usually signify turning points in Jesus ministry. Here, a conversation with a Syrophoenician woman marks the beginning of his mission to the Gentiles. 24 [Jesus] set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, 25 but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. 26 Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 He said to her, Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children s food and throw it to the dogs. 28 But she answered him, Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children s crumbs. 29 Then he said to her, For saying that, you may go the demon has left your daughter. 30 So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. 31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32 They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33 He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. 34 Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, 6 Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. 35 And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 36 Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37 They were astounded beyond measure, saying, He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak. P The Gospel of the Lord. C Praise to you, O Christ. SERMON Pastor Layne Nelson You Never Let Go Even though I walk Through the valley of the shadow of death Your perfect love is casting out fear And even when I'm caught In the middle of the storms of this life I won't turn back I know You are near (PRE-CHORUS) And I will fear no evil For my God is with me And if my God is with me Whom then shall I fear Whom then shall I fear 1 Oh no You never let go Through the calm and through the storm Oh no You never let go In ev'ry high and ev'ry low Oh no You never let go Lord You never let go of me And I can see a light that is coming For the heart that holds on A glorious light beyond all compare And there will be an end to these troubles But until that day comes We'll live to know You here on the earth (PRE-CHORUS) And I will fear no evil For my God is with me And if my God is with me Whom then shall I fear Whom then shall I fear 1 Oh no You never let go Through the calm and through the storm Oh no You never let go In ev'ry high and ev'ry low Oh no You never let go Lord You never let go of me (BRIDGE) Yes I can see a light That is coming for the heart that holds on 7