The Celebration of the Gospel
May 12 , 2019 — Fourth Sunday of Easter
The sheep follow the shepherd because they know the shepherd’s voice.
—John 10.4
_______We Gather as the Body of Christ_______
GREETING
PRELUDE – Precious Lord, Take My Hand – Thomas A. Dorsey
[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: God of love, Creator of life, we hear your voice.
All: You call to us in love, and we answer.
Christ of love, shepherd of your sheep, you lead us out in love.
You walk in love, and we follow you.
Holy Spirit, breath of love, you give us life that cannot be taken from us.
You enliven us now to worship you, and to go forth to serve in love. Alleluia!
* SONG – Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us – Blue hymnal # 381, v. 1, 4
___________ We Attend to the Word___________
(10:30) CHILDREN’S TIME
(10:30) THE WORD IN SONG – Brother James’ Air – arr. Gordon Jacob
PSALM – Psalm 23
[The psalm expresses God’s care as shepherding, accompanying, feeding and blessing us, even through the darkest valleys.]
God, you are my shepherd. I shall not want.
You make me lie down in green pastures;
you lead me beside still waters;
you restore my soul.
You lead me in right paths for your name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley,
I fear no evil; for you are with me;
your rod and your staff— they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.
PRAYER
God, you are the gentle shepherd of our souls. Call to us and we will know your voice. Speak to us and we will answer. Go before us, and we will follow. You who give us life, we hunger for your grace. Shepherd us, O God of love. Amen.
NEW TESTAMENT Revelation 7.9, 13-14, 17
[John’s vision of a multitude of angels singing praise to God. An elder describes the angels as those who have survived a great ordeal and “washed their robes in the blood of the lamb,” that is, their sins have been washed clean by Christ’s forgiveness.]
After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands.
Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, robed in white, and where have they come from?” I said to him, “Sir, you are the one that knows.” Then he said to me, “These are they who have come out of the great ordeal; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. The Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
+
GOSPEL – John 10.1-5, 27-30
[Jesus speaks of his love for us, and how we listen for his voice and follow him. “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me, and I give them eternal life…. No one will ever snatch them out of my hand.”]
“Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for the shepherd, and the sheep hear the shepherd’s voice. The shepherd calls their own sheep by name and leads them out. When they have brought out all their own, they go ahead of them, and the sheep follow the shepherd because they know the shepherd’s voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.”
My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”
+
SERMON- Following the voice
SONG – Lead me, Lord – Blue hymnal # 473
THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
SHARING THE PEACE OF CHRIST
___________We Share at Christ’s Table _________
OFFERING OUR GIFTS – His Name Is Wonderful -Audrey Meir, arr: Fred Bock
* COMMUNION SONG – Christ Is Risen – Blue hymnal #307
THE GREAT THANKSGIVING
[Sung:]
May the Lord be with you. And also with you.
Lift up your hearts to God. We lift them up to the Lord.
Now let us give our thanks unto the Lord our God.
It is good to give our thanks and praise. Hosanna on high!
Creator God, Source of all Being, Giver of Life, we thank you.
Your grace creates this world, and all that is in it.
You speak us into being. Your voice calls us to life.
You lead us beside still waters, and renew our life.
When we wander you are faithful.
When we are imprisoned you set us free.
You send us Jesus, the shepherd of our souls,
who leads us in paths of justice and compassion.
We thank you, and with all Creation we sing your praise.
[Sung:]
Holy, holy. Holy Lord, God of power and might,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna on high.
How blessed is the one who comes in your name.
Hosanna in the highest. Hosanna on high.
Blessed are all who come in your name,
and blessed is Jesus, your Christ.
He fed and healed the broken. He gathered the outcast.
He broke all walls of division, all systems of privilege and exclusion.
He has walked with us through the valley of the shadow of death:
for his revolutionary love he was crucified, but you raised him from the dead.
His presence comforts us, and we are not afraid.
[The Blessing and Covenant…]
Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of me.”
As often as we break this bread and share this cup
we remember his death and resurrection until he comes again.
Remembering these, your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving
as a living and holy sacrifice, in union with Christ’s offering for us,
as we proclaim the mystery of our faith:
[Sung:]
Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
God, you prepare a table for us that unites us with our enemies.
You anoint us with oil; our cup overflows.
Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and cup,
that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ.
Pour out your Holy Spirit on us,
that we may be for the world the Body of Christ.
By your Spirit may we spread your goodness and mercy all our days.
For we dwell in your presence forever and ever.
[Sung:]
Amen. Alleluia! Amen. Alleluia!
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 HOLY MEAL [Everyone is welcome at the table of Christ’s self-giving love.
The bread is wheat-, soy- and dairy free. We dip the bread in the juice.]
PRAYER OF BLESSING
Gracious God, we thank you for this mystery in which you have given yourself to us. You have fed us in the green pastures of your love. Call us out now, and lead us in paths of love and justice for the sake of the healing of all Creation, in the power of your Spirit and the company of the risen Christ. Amen.
______We Are Sent in Ministry to the World_____
THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH IN THE WORLD
* SONG – I Have Decided to Follow Jesus – Black hymnal #2129
* 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 – Fantasy In C Major – G. F. Handel, arr: Homer Whitford