The Celebration of the Gospel
November 15, 2015 —25th Sunday after Pentecost
Consecration Sunday
The whole body, joined and knit together
by every ligament with which it is equipped,
as each part is working properly,
promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.
—Ephesians 4.16
_______ We Gather as the Body of Christ_______
GREETING
PRELUDE Be Thou Near Me J. S. Bach
[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: Generous God, you pour yourself out for us and for the world.
All: We thank you for your generosity.
Jesus, you invited friends and strangers alike to celebrate with you.
We rejoice to celebrate with you.
Bountiful Spirit, you are always with us, even when we are unaware.
Call us forth from the protective cocoons we build around ourselves
and lead us in service. We worship you with our whole lives. Alleluia!
* SONG Sweet, Sweet Spirit Blue hymnal #334
CHILDREN’S TIME
____________ We Attend to the Word__________
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Pastor: The grace of God be with you.
Congregation: And also with you.
Trusting in God’s tender mercy, let us confess our sin to God with one another.
God of love, help us to see when our hearts are open,
when our hands and our eyes and our minds are open;
and when they are closed—closed to others, closed to what is new,
closed to your grace.
By the grace you show us in Christ,
open our hearts, forgive our distrust, heal us, and perfect your love in us.
SILENT PRAYER … THE WORD OF GRACE
RESPONSE Freely, Freely Blue hymnal #389
* PSALTER Psalm 111 Blue hymnal, page 832:2
[A song of praise to God, who is gracious and merciful, who provides food, and who gives redemption to all people.]
Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
Great are the works of the Lord,
studied by all who delight in them.
Full of honor and majesty is God’s work,
and God’s righteousness endures forever.
God has gained renown by wonderful deeds;
the Lord is gracious and merciful.
God provides food for those who fear God;
and is ever mindful of the covenant.
God has shown us powerful works,
in giving us the heritage of the nations.
The works of God’s hands are faithful and just;
all God’s precepts are trustworthy.
They are established for ever and ever,
to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.
God sent redemption to the people;
and has commanded the covenant forever.
Holy and awesome is the name of the Hoy One.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding.
God’s praise endures forever.
+
THE PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
[Anyone who wishes may share a prayer concern 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.
PASSING THE PEACE
THE WORD IN SONG Great Is Thy Faithfulness Arr. Joel Raney
(Chorus, Bells of St. Matthew’s, Ken Plant, piano, Joshua Pak, guest organist)
GOSPEL Luke 9.57-62; 21.1-6
[Some people say they want to follow Jesus, but he cautions them that it requires commitment and sacrifice. Then Jesus praises a widow who contributes two little coins, because it is not the size but the generosity of a gift that makes it powerful. He harkens to the Biblical principle of proportional giving: it is not any particular amount, but the percentage of the money that passes through our hands that shapes our values and our faith.]
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Human One has nowhere to rest a weary head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the Realm of God.” Another said, “I will follow you, Rabbi; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
…
He looked up and saw rich people putting their gifts into the treasury; he also saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. He said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; for all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”
When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, he said, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.”
+
* SONG Nothing Between Blue hymnal # 373
SERMON Reminding Us of Our Relationships Guest preacher: Rev. Wendell Luke, Jr.
____ We Are Sent in Ministry to the World______
A TIME FOR DECIDING
[There are people ready to pray with you at the candles in the corners.]
OFFERING OUR GIFTS AND PLEDGES
* PRAYER
Always generous God, whose heart abounds with gifts for us, receive these gifts and pledges as symbols of our intention to live surrounded by your mercy, inspired by your Spirit, open to the joy of your presence, hospitable to one another and to all strangers, and as generous as you are to all the world. Consecrate our offerings and pledges with the living presence and power of your Holy Spirit, and draw us ever close to you. Amen.
* SONG I’m Gonna Live So God Can Use Me Black hymnal #2153
* THE BLESSING AND SENDING FORTH
* RESPONSE Please stand and sing to your neighbors:
May the grace and peace of Christ be with you my friends.
Go and share the love of God, love that never ends.
FEASTING IN JOY [Everyone is invited to join us as we continue our worship, feasting with Jesus, our grace-filled host.]