Order of Worship April 11, 2021

                                             First Presbyterian Church

April 11, 2021

10:00 AM

Order of Worship: Palm Sunday

 

CALL TO WORSHIP  (Psalm 136)

O give thanks to the Lord, for God is good, for God’s steadfast love endures forever.

Who alone does great wonders, for God’s steadfast love endures forever

Who spread out the earth on the waters, for God’s steadfast love endures forever.

Who made the great lights, for God’s steadfast love endures forever.

It is God who remembered us in our low estate, for God’s steadfast love endures forever.

And rescued us from all that threatens us, for God’s steadfast love endures forever.

O give thanks to the God of heaven, for God’s steadfast love endures forever

Let us worship the Living God.

 

Hymn of Praise: “All Glory Laud and Honor”

Refrain: All glory, laud, and honor, to thee, Redeemer, King, to whom the lips of children made sweet hosannas ring.

1. Thou art the King of Israel, thou David's royal Son, who in the Lord's name comest, the King and Blessed One. (Refrain)

2. The company of angels are praising thee on high, and we with all creation in chorus make reply. (Refrain)

3. The people of the Hebrews with psalms before thee went; our prayer and praise and anthems before thee we present. (Refrain)

4. To thee, before thy passion, they sang their hymns of praise; to thee, now high exalted, our melody we raise. (Refrain)

5. Thou didst accept their praises; accept the prayers we bring, who in all good delightest, thou good and gracious King. (Refrain)

      PRAYER OF CONFESSION (In Unison)

God of Easter, in the risen Christ you broke the power of sin and evil. And yet we still live in the tombs of forgetfulness, anxiety and fear. We have failed to love You as we should. We have neglected to love our neighbor. Indeed, we have even failed to love ourselves. Release us from the tombs that terrify us, so that we can see your image in one another and in your good creation. Indeed, free us from the graves of self-hatred, so that we can see ourselves as your children. Amen.

 *SILENT PRAYERS OF CONFESSION

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

The mercy of the Lord is sure. In Christ we are forgiven and set free from the chains that bind us so that we can be an Easter people. Thanks be to God!

*THE GLORIA PATRI

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.  Amen.

INVITATION: “Dear Lord, I need You, please come into my life today.  Amen”

 LESSON: John 20: 19-31

19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ ²⁰After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. ²¹Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ ²²When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’

24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. ²⁵So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’

26 A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ ²⁷Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ ²⁸Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ ²⁹Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.’

30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. ³¹But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

 SERMON:                          “Jesus Comes to Complete God’s Plan”                        Rev. Peter Hofstra

AFFIRMATION OF FAITH (from A Brief Statement of Faith)

 In a broken and fearful world the Spirit gives us courage to pray without ceasing, to witness among all peoples to Christ as Lord and Savior, to unmask idolatries in church and culture, to hear the voices of peoples long silenced, and to work with others for justice, freedom, and peace. In gratitude to God, empowered by the Spirit, we strive to serve Christ in our daily tasks and to live holy and joyful lives, even as we watch for God’s new heaven and new earth, praying, “Come, Lord Jesus!

PASSING OF THE PEACE

THE OFFERING OF OUR TITHES & GIFTS

God is the fountain of many good gifts. We are blessed by the goodness all around us. Let us now bring our gifts in joyful response to the many gifts that we have been given.

 

*DOXOLOGY

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.  Amen.

*PRAYER OF DEDICATION

O God, we offer these gifts on the promise that they will serve you in our community and world. May they help bring peace, love and justice for the earth and all who dwell in it.

JOYS AND CONCERNS

PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE AND THE LORD’S PRAYER

God of the Easter season, you come into our midst with resurrection power to free us from the realities that enslave us; that keep us from the fullness of life you desire for all of your children and for the earth itself. Help us to be open to your presence in our lives even if it means facing difficult circumstances that bind us and keep us from living fully. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for your church amid the conflicted times in which we live, that we would serve you faithfully, and be the place where wounds are touched, attended to, released, liberated and redeemed. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for the people in every land, that we may seek the common good, and work for justice and peace for all the people and not just the few. For all those who hunger and thirst, that they may be filled with good things. For those whose rights have been abused or rejected, may we stand in solidarity with them and be a witness to justice. And we pray for those whose lives have been torn and traumatized by violence — may we be agents of your love to each of these your children. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

God of the nations, we pray for elected officials around our globe. Help them resist greed, prideful ambition and partisan gain in order that they may serve the welfare of all — especially refugees and immigrants in our midst. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer. 

God of salvation and healing, we come to you as a people who continue to struggle with overwhelming challenges of the pandemic. We pray for special measures of strength and endurance to weary healthcare workers and to all who are now facilitating vaccination. May your comfort be with all who are sick and all who have lost loved ones.

We pray all these things in the name of Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray saying,

Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.  Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil; for Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory forever.  Amen.

CLOSING HYMN: “All hail the power of Jesus Name”

1. All hail the power of Jesus' name! Let angels prostrate fall; bring forth the royal diadem, and crown him Lord of all. bring forth the royal diadem, and crown him Lord of all.

2. Ye chosen seed of Israel's race, ye ransomed from the fall, hail him who saves you by his grace, and crown him Lord of all. hail him who saves you by his grace, and crown him Lord of all.

 3. Let every kindred, every tribe on this terrestrial ball, to him all majesty ascribe, and crown him Lord of all. to him all majesty ascribe, and crown him Lord of all.

 4. O that with yonder sacred throng we at his feet may fall! We'll join the everlasting song, and crown him Lord of all. We'll join the everlasting song, and crown him Lord of all.

*BENEDICTION

*THREE FOLD AMEN

Elements of Order of Worship drawn from The Presbyterian Outlook, written by Roger Gench.