This is the lesson and sermon from Sunday, November 30th, 2008,
Mark 13: 24-37
November 2008 Archives
This is the lesson and sermon from Sunday, November 23th, 2008,
Luke 17: 11-19
THE FIRST LESSON Deuteronomy 8:7-18
THE SECOND LESSON Luke 17:11-19
SERMON "Who Really Gives Thanks?"
Worship Notes
Today we celebrate the Sunday before Thanksgiving where the theme of giving thanks is central in our worship. The text at the heart of worship is the story of Jesus healing the ten lepers and the only one who returned to give thanks.
Psalm 100, a psalm of thanksgiving, appears in our Call to Worship and proclamation of the Word.
Our Confession lifts up the many ways we fail to give thanks for the gifts bestowed upon us.
Part of our celebration and thanksgiving today is the recognition of new members following the sermon.
In this morning's service, we are given an opportunity to express our thanks by sharing our bounty of food so that others will not have to go hungry.
This is the lesson and sermon from Sunday, November 16th, 2008,
Matthew 25:14-30
THE FIRST LESSON 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11
THE SECOND LESSON Matthew 25:14-30
SERMON "The Adventure of Faith"
Worship Notes
Today marks Stewardship Sunday in which we dedicate our gifts to the service of God. The central text is taken from the 25th chapter of Matthew where Jesus tells the parable of the talents. It is a reminder of our commitment to not only share our gifts but also risk them in the service of God's kingdom. The Call to Worship reminds us that the "earth and all that is in it belongs to God." Our Prayer of Confession highlights the ways fear prevents us from fully responding to God's grace, yet in our Declaration of Forgiveness, God continues to reach out in love despite our tepidness. The hymn following the sermon is our prayer for God to take our life and use it ways God sees fit. Our concluding hymn is the popular and meaningful song in which we respond to God's call singing "Here I am Lord."
In our service this morning we bring our pledges for 2009 symbolically coming forward to place them in the offering plate. Pledge card are available in the pews if you have forgotten to bring yours this Sunday. It is also appropriate we install our new officers for 2009 signifying their commitment on our behalf to serve this congregation with all their passion, love, and spirit. The constitutional questions asked of the new deacons and elders are the same answered by Ministers of the Word and Sacrament indicating the equality of relationship in leading the church. We celebrate their ministry today as they respond to God's call to serve each of you in the pew.
This is the lesson and sermon from Sunday, November 9th, 2008,
Matthew 25:1 - 13
THE FIRST LESSON 1 John 3:1-3
THE SECOND LESSON Revelation 7: 9-17
SERMON "Life and Death: The Courage of Faith"
Worship Notes
In worship today, we remember and celebrate those persons who have gone from our lives and who have joined the communion of saints with our Lord God in heaven. In the liturgical calendar, this commemoration is called "The Festival of All Saints Day," and it is observed on November 1. It is Westminster's tradition to observe All Saints on the first Sunday in November. The liturgical color for All Saints Day is white.
The focus of this service is not on the experience of death and loss, but rather on the celebration of life. Those "saints" whom we remember by name in worship today are the ten individuals from this congregation who have died since last All Saints Day in November 2007. As the name of each person is read aloud, a family member or deacon will take light from the Christ Candle to light one of the candles placed in front of the communion table as a visible sign of the presence of the deceased among the communion of saints. As we worship, we recall the ways in which we, like these individuals, live out our response to God's call upon our lives within this community and in mission to the greater world outside these walls.
Communion today will be received by intinction. After coming forward to receive the bread and cup, you may wish to light a candle to celebrate the memory of someone from your own life who now is among the communion of saints.
The music through which we worship today also celebrates those who have gone before us and whose Christian examples give shape to our mission. The prelude and the opening hymn, "For All the Saints," are set to a tune by English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams who died fifty years ago in 1958. The response hymn, "I Sing a Song of the Saints of God", articulates our understanding that saints live among us and serve with us in mission even now. We exit the worship service today as a community poised to carry out that mission in the world. As we do so, we unite our voices in singing, "When the Saints Go Marching In."
