The Celebration of the Gospel
January 27, 2019 — Third Sunday after Epiphany
The Spirit of God is upon me to bring good news to the poor.
— Luke 4.18
________ We Gather as the Body of Christ______
GREETING
PRELUDE 8:15: Open My Eyes – arr Kevin McChesney (Ringtones Quartet)
10:30: Piano Sonata #11, 1st Mov. – W. A. Mozart, arr: Lee Evans
[As we listen to the music we quiet our minds and bodies,
listen for our hearts’ deepest desires,
and become present to the Holy One who is lovingly present for us.]
* CALL TO WORSHIP
Leader: Spirit of Truth:
All: open our eyes.
Spirit of healing,
set us free.
Spirit of love,
come upon us and send us to a hurting world. Amen.
* SONG Holy Black hymnal # 2019
____________ We Attend to the Word__________
(10:30) CHILDREN’S TIME
THE WORD IN SONG
8:15: When Morning Guilds the Skies, arr Karen Roth
(Ringtones Quartet)
10:30: The Prayer, Carole Sager and David Foster, arr by Joel Raney
(Bells of St. Matthew’s)
PRAYER
God, you who are both mighty and loving, you filled Jesus with your Spirit, the Spirit of healing and justice. Fill us with that Spirit, that we may follow Jesus faithfully. We are here not for ourselves but for the world. Fill us with your Spirit to love and to serve and to set free your beloved people. Amen.
OLD TESTAMENT Micah 6.1, 4,6-8
[The prophet describes what God asks of us: not praise and worship or atonement for our sins, not ideology or doctrine, but to “do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God.” ]
Hear what the Lord says:
“I brought you up from the land of Egypt,
and redeemed you from the house of slavery.”
“With what, then shall I come before the Holy One,
and bow myself before God on high?
Shall I come before God with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old,
with ten thousands of rivers of oil?”
God has told you, O mortal, what is good;
and what does God require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God?
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NEW TESTAMENT 1 Corinthians 12.12-31a
[The church is Christ’s body: we are all connected; we all have something to offer, and we need each other. We are how Christ acts in the world.]
Just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. In the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot were to say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body”, that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear were to say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be?
But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as God chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many members, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and those members of the body that we think less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect; whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member, that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
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GOSPEL Luke 4.14-21
[Jesus begins his ministry by quoting from Isaiah (61.1-2): “God has sent me to serve the poor, the powerless and the oppressed.”}
Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone. When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:
“The Spirit of God is upon me,
because God has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.
God has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim the year of God’s favor.”
And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
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SERMON The Spirit of God is upon me…
* SONG Do Justice Steve G-H
Do justice, love mercy, walk humble with your God.
Oh, helps us humbly live your justice, your love, your mercy.
* AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
We trust in you, God: you create all things; you free slaves; you lead us into new lives.
We follow you, Jesus, the Christ of God, embodiment of love. We follow in your footsteps, bringing good news to the poor, recovery of sight to the blind and liberty to the oppressed. We offer our lives as proclamation of your grace. Jesus was crucified, and you raised him from the dead. We trust you to raise us to lives of love and service.
We live by your power, Holy Spirit. O Mystery of Love and Justice, your Spirit is upon us for the sake of the world. Fill us, renew your presence in us, and send us into the world to do justice, to embody resurrection, to heal and to forgive, to be the living image of your grace. Amen.
SONG Here I Am, Lord Blue hymnal # 593
THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
[Anyone who wishes may share a prayer at the microphone.]
THE PRAYER OF JESUS
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 trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.
SHARING THE PEACE OF CHRIST
______We Are Sent in Ministry to the World_____
OFFERING OUR GIFTS How Great Thou Art Stuart K. Hine, arr: Fred Bock
* OFFERING SONG Let There Be Peace on Earth Blue hymnal #431
* PRAYER
Gracious God, we give you our lives, symbolized in these gifts. Receive them with love, bless them with grace and use them according to your will. Fill us with your Spirit and send us to serve, to heal and to work for justice, for the sake of the world, in the name of Christ. Amen.
THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH IN THE WORLD
* SONG For the Healing of the Nations Blue hymnal #428
* THE BLESSING AND SENDING FORTH
RESPONSE We stand and sing to our neighbors:
May the grace and peace of Christ be with you my friends.
Go and share the love of God, love that never ends.
POSTLUDE Jesu, Joy Of Man’s Desiring J. S. Bach, arr: Mark Hayes
[During the postlude there are people ready to pray with you at the candles in the corners.
Following worship please join us for fellowship and refreshments.]