Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost
SUPPLEMENTAL ORDER OF WORSHIP
(for those unable to join us at the church building for masked, socially distanced, congregational worship and quarantine-safe communion)
PRELUDE:
The God of Abraham Praise (LEONI)
(Shaped by its traditional Jewish tune, this selection of English stanzas conveys the essence of the Yigdal, a canticle based on a medieval Hebrew statement of faith about the nature of God and often used in synagogue worship, alternately chanted by cantor and congregation. The hymn is sung here by the choir of Trinity College, Oxford.)
CALL TO WORSHIP:
Leader: O give thanks to the Lord; call on God’s name.
People: Make God’s deeds known among the peoples.
Leader: Sing to God, sing praises to the Lord; tell of all his wonderful works.
People: Make God’s deeds known among the peoples. We glory in God’s holy name, and our hearts rejoice when we seek the Lord.
Leader: Seek the Lord and his strength, and remember the wonderful works God has done.
All: We seek God’s presence continually and give thanks for all that God has done in our world! Let us come into God’s presence with joy.
OPENING HYMN:
(#281 in The Presbyterian Hymnal)
Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer/Jehovah (CWM RHONDDA)
(The original text of this hymn was written in Welsh by William Williams, a circuit-riding preacher, in 1745, and given the original title, “A prayer for strength to go through the wilderness of the world.” It has since been translated in seventy-five languages. It did not gain its popular tune until the early 20th century, when John Hughes composed ‘Cwm Rhondda’. In both its original text and in English translation, it is a stirring hymn of pilgrimage filled with vivid imagery from Hebrew scripture, including today’s passage from Exodus 14.)
CALL TO CONFESSION:
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the Truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins before God, we know that through Jesus Christ we already have forgiveness. Therefore, let us confess honestly and seek God’s forgiveness together.
PRAYER OF CONFESSION:
Gracious God, Creator and Redeemer, in reverence we bow before you, giving thanks for your love and seeking your blessings.
Yet, we confess that we have hoarded more than our share of the world’s bounty; that in silence we have consented to the oppression of our sisters and brothers; that we have failed to witness, by word and action, to the freeing truth of Jesus Christ.
In Christ’s name, forgive us and grant us a new birth of spirit, that we may be your instruments of oneness and joy, of healing and peace. Amen.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON:
Hear the good news!
Who is in a position to condemn us? Only Christ, and Christ died for us, Christ rose for us, Christ reigns in power for us, and Christ prays for us. If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation. The old has passed away, and everything has become fresh and new.
Friends, believe the good news of the Gospel. In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven!
SCRIPTURES:
(‘The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them. It came between the army of Egypt and the army of Israel. And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night; one did not come near the other all night.’ Ex. 14:19-20)
(‘We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living. Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.’ Rom 14:7-10)
(‘“Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”’ Matt. 18:32-35)
SERMON:
The Faith to Forgive . . . and Live
COMMUNION ANTHEM:
The Prayer of St. Francis (MAKE ME A CHANNEL OF YOUR PEACE) (Though popular opinion credits this prayer to Francis of Assisi, the earliest known printing was in a French religious magazine in 1912. Yet that gentle saint’s spirit seems evident in these words, a quality that has spurred many paraphrases and musical settings such as this one, written and composed by South African born musician and journalist Sebastian Temple in 1967.)
PRAYER OF INTERCESSION:
God of mercy and healing,
you who hear the cries of those in need,
receive these petitions of your people
that all who are troubled
may know peace, comfort, and courage.
Individual Prayers of the People, concluding with:
Life-giving God,
heal our lives,
that we may acknowledge your wonderful deeds
and offer you thanks from generation to generation
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE LORD’S PRAYER:
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. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
CLOSING HYMN:
(#400 in The Presbyterian Hymnal)
When We Are Living (SOMOS DEL SEÑOR)
(This hymn began as an orally-transmitted stanza reflecting on part of today’s epistle reading from Paul – Romans 14:7–8 – and was expanded in 1983 by a Spanish-language hymnal committee to offer additional examples of the many dimensions of life, thereby strengthening the recurring affirmation that we belong to God through them all. In this anthem version, words from Paul’s letter to the Philippians also feature prominently.)
CHARGE AND BENEDICTION:
Let us go out into the world in peace, returning no one evil for evil, but overcoming evil with good.
And may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all, both now and forever. Amen.
POSTLUDE:
Let All Things Now Living (ASH GROVE)
(Written for an easy-to-sing folk melody familiar in England as well as Wales, this 1939 text by American composer Katherine K. Davis – perhaps most famous for her carol “The Little Drummer Boy” – bears many resemblances to both Psalm 148 and the traditional canticle Benedicite, omnia opera Domini: ‘Bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord’. It is sung here a capella by the Lebanon County Youth Chorus.)
Bethesda Presbyterian Church 