The Order of Worship – September 7, 2025
This is the 250 Day of 2025.
There are 115 days remaining in 2025.
Filled with the Holy Spirit,
we are a people of prayer
committed to love one another
and equipped to share Christ’s love throughout the world.
Prelude:
Welcome & Announcements:
This month’s mission focus is the DS Wesley Foundation
The third focus of this time between Pentecost and Advent is The Life of Devotion
Bible Study is at afaithtalk.com
Five Loaves will return soon
Call to Worship: I have Decided to Follow Jesus…No. 2129 (C)
Responsive Reading: Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18
You have searched me out
1 O LORD, you have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from far away.
3 You search out my path and my lying down,
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
O LORD, you know it completely.
5 You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is so high that I cannot attain it.
13 For it was you who formed my inward parts;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works; that I know very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes beheld my unformed substance.
In your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed.
17 How weighty to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 I try to count them — they are more than the sand;
I come to the end — I am still with you.
Praise the LORD!
Opening Hymn: Lift High the Cross…159 (C)
Refrain
Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim till all the world adore his sacred name.
Verse 1
Come, Christians, follow this triumphant sign. The hosts of God in unity combine.
Refrain
Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim till all the world adore his sacred name.
Verse 2
Each newborn servant of the Crucified bears on the brow the seal of him who died.
Refrain
Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim till all the world adore his sacred name.
Verse 3
O Lord, once lifted on the glorious tree, as thou has promised, draw the world to thee.
Refrain
Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim till all the world adore his sacred name.
Verse 4
So shall our song of triumph ever be: praise to the Crucified for victory!
Refrain
Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim till all the world adore his sacred name.
Affirmation of Faith:
The Apostle’s Creed..No. 881
I believe in God the Father Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth;
and in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord:
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified,
dead,
and buried;
the third day he rose from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge
the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Gloria Patri…Page 70
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen. Amen.
Praise Song: Grace Like Rain (Db)
Verse 1
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound,
that saved a wretch like me
I once was lost but now I’m found
was blind but now I see so clearly
Chorus
Hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me
Hallelujah all my stains are washed away
Hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me
Hallelujah all my stains are washed away
They’re washed away
Verse 2
’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed
Chorus
Hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me
Hallelujah all my stains are washed away
Hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me
Hallelujah all my stains are washed away
They’re washed away
Verse 3
When we’ve been there ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun
Chorus
Hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me
Hallelujah all my stains are washed away
Hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me
Hallelujah all my stains are washed away
They’re washed away
Chorus
Hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me
Hallelujah all my stains are washed away
Hallelujah grace like rain falls down on me
Hallelujah all my stains are washed away
They’re washed away
Pastoral Prayer
Contact us here to add your concern to our prayer list.
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 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.
Anthem: For the Bread Which You Have Broken (F)
Offertory
Doxology:
Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts;
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen
Children’s Moment
Children’s Song (Woke Up This Morning) (E)
Verse 1
I woke up this morning with my mind stayed on Jesus
I woke up this morning with my mind stayed on Jesus
I woke up this morning with my mind stayed on Jesus
Hallelu Hallelu Hallelujah
Verse 2
I’m walking and talking with my mind stayed on Jesus
I’m walking and talking with my mind stayed on Jesus
I’m walking and talking with my mind stayed on Jesus
Hallelu Hallelu Hallelujah
Verse 3
Satan don’t want to let your mind stay on Jesus
Satan don’t want to let your mind stay on Jesus
Satan don’t want to let your mind stay on Jesus
Hallelu Hallelu Hallelujah
Verse 4
Everybody ought to let their mind stay on Jesus
Everybody ought to let their mind stay on Jesus
Everybody ought to let their mind stay on Jesus
Hallelu Hallelu Hallelujah
Verse 1
I woke up this morning with my mind stayed on Jesus
I woke up this morning with my mind stayed on Jesus
I woke up this morning with my mind stayed on Jesus
Hallelu Hallelu Hallelujah
Hallelu Hallelu Hallelujah
Prayer for Illumination
Lord, open our hearts and minds by the power of your Holy Spirit, that as the Scriptures are read and your Word is proclaimed, we may hear with joy what you say to us today. Amen.
Old Testament Reading: Jeremiah 18:1-11
The Lord shapes Israel
1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2 “Come, go down to the potter’s house, and there I will let you hear my words.”
3 So I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was working at his wheel. 4 The vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter’s hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as seemed good to him. 5 Then the word of the LORD came to me:
6 Can I not do with you, O house of Israel, just as this potter has done? says the LORD. Just like the clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. 7 At one moment I may declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, 8 but if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will change my mind about the disaster that I intended to bring on it.
9 And at another moment I may declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, 10 but if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will change my mind about the good that I had intended to do to it.
11 Now, therefore, say to the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Thus says the LORD: Look, I am a potter shaping evil against you and devising a plan against you. Turn now, all of you from your evil way, and amend your ways and your doings.
Leader: The Word of God for the people of God
All: Thanks be to God
Gospel Reading: Luke 14:25-33
Give up your possessions
25 Now large crowds were traveling with him; and he turned and said to them, 26 “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him,
30 saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’
31 Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace. 33 So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.”
Leader: The Word of God for the people of God
All: Thanks be to God
Sermon Text: Philemon 1:1-21
Paul says, Receive Onesimus
1 Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother,
To our beloved coworker Philemon, 2 to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house:
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I thank my God always when I mention you in my prayers,
5 because I hear of your love for all the saints and your faith toward the Lord Jesus. 6 I pray that the partnership of your faith may become effective as you comprehend all the good that we share in Christ. 7 I have indeed received much joy and encouragement from your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, my brother.
8 For this reason, though I am more than bold enough in Christ to command you to do the right thing, 9 yet I would rather appeal to you on the basis of love–and I, Paul, do this as an old man and now also as a prisoner of Christ Jesus. 10 I am appealing to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I have become during my imprisonment. 11 Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me. 12 I am sending him, that is, my own heart, back to you.
13 I wanted to keep him with me so that he might minister to me in your place during my imprisonment for the gospel, 14 but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your good deed might be voluntary and not something forced. 15 Perhaps this is the reason he was separated from you for a while, so that you might have him back for the long term, 16 no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother–especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord. 17 So if you consider me your partner, welcome him as you would welcome me.
18 If he has wronged you in any way or owes you anything, charge that to me. 19 I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand: I will repay it. I say nothing about your owing me even your own self. 20 Yes, brother, let me have this benefit from you in the Lord! Refresh my heart in Christ.
21 Confident of your obedience, I am writing to you, knowing that you will do even more than I ask.
All: Thanks be to God
Sermon: “Do the Right Thing”
Holy Communion
Invitation
Leader:Christ our Lord invites to his table all who love him, who earnestly repent of their sin and seek to live in peace with one another. Therefore, let us confess our sin before God and one another.
Confession and Pardon
People: Merciful God, we confess that we have not loved you with our whole heart. We have failed to be an obedient church. We have not done your will, we have broken your law, we have rebelled against your love, we have not loved our neighbors, and we have not heard the cry of the needy. Forgive us, we pray. Free us for joyful obedience, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
All pray in silence
Hear the good news: Christ died for us while we were yet sinners; that proves God’s love toward us.
Leader: In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!
People: In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!
All: Glory to God. Amen.
The Peace
Leader: Let us offer one another signs of reconciliation and love.
The Great Thanksgiving
Leader: The Lord be with you.
People: And also with you.
Leader: Lift up your hearts.People: We lift them up to the Lord.
Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
People: It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Leader: It is right, and a good and joyful thing, always and everywhere to give thanks to you, Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. And so, with your people on earth and all the company of heaven we praise your name and join their unending hymn:
All: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
Leader: Holy are you, and blessed is your Son Jesus Christ. By the baptism of his suffering, death and resurrection, you gave birth to your church, delivered us from slavery to sin and death, and made with us a new covenant by water and the Spirit. On the night in which he gave himself up for us he took the bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread, gave it to his disciples and said: “Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
When the supper was over, he took the cup, gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said: “Drink from this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant, poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
And so, in remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ, we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving as a holy and living sacrifice, in union with Christ’s offering for us, as we proclaim the mystery of faith.
All: Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again.
Leader: Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here, and on these gifts of bread and wine. Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ, that we may be for the world the body of Christ, redeemed by his blood. By your Spirit make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world, until Christ comes final victory, and we feast at his heavenly banquet. Through your Son Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit in your holy church, all honor and glory is yours, almighty Father, now and for ever.
People: Amen.
Service of Communion
Closing Hymn: Have Thine Own Way, Lord…No. 382 (1, 4) (Eb)
Verse 1
Have thine own way, Lord!
Have thine own way!
Thou art the potter; I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after thy will,
while I am waiting, yielded and still.
Verse 4
Have thine own way, Lord!
Have thine own way!
Hold o’er my being absolute sway.
Fill with thy Spirit till all shall see
Christ only, always, living in me!
Filled Up and Poured Out
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