MORE PEOPLE MORE LIKE CHRIST
9:00am/10:30am Services
May 26, 2024
PRELUDE
WORDS OF WELCOME
*CALL TO WORSHIP
SERVICE FOR THE LORD’S DAY
Sunday, May 26, 2024 9:00am & 10:30am
PLEASE SILENCE OR PLACE YOUR CELL PHONE ON VIBRATE.
GATHERING
Festival Intrada on NICAEA arr. Jerry Westenkuehler
Leader: Rejoice in the Lord always! Again, I say, Rejoice!
People: May our gentleness be evident to all people. The Lord is near!
Leader: Do not be anxious about anything. But through prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.
People: And the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
People: Therefore, let us seek the Lord in prayer.
*PRAYER OF INVOCATION
*HYMN Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty
*AFFIRMATION OF FAITH (Apostles’ Creed)
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 Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on 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 Ghost, The holy catholic church, The communion of saints, The forgiveness of sins, The resurrection of the body, And the life everlasting. Amen.
*GLORY BE TO THE FATHER
PRAYER OF CONFESSION
Gracious Lord, forgive us our sins. We believe that our faith is so personal, we act as though we have a right to refuse to share it with the world You love. Being reluctant to forgive ourselves, we fail to proclaim the good news of Your forgiveness. And being judgmental, we refuse to let others claim the mercy You extend to all who call Jesus their Lord and Savior. Being arrogant, we declare ourselves to be good and not needing the assistance of One who saves. Open our hearts that we might fully experience Your boundless love in Jesus the Christ. And send us forth to share with others the good news of Your love for the world. For it is in His name we pray. Amen.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON
(John 3:16-17)
Leader: For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Therefore, let us assure one another of God’s pardon. All: In Jesus Christ, we are forgiven. Thanks be to God.
PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION
Spirit of God, speak once again through the Words of Scripture that our listening ears may hear Your voice. Help us to place Your Word in our minds, treasure it in our hearts, choose it with our wills, and live it through our bodies. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.
SCRIPTURE
Leader: This is the word of the Lord.
All: Thanks be to God!
Matthew 22:34-40
Page 1409 Pew Bible
CARING
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
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.
*HYMN
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 forever. Amen.
My Faith Looks Up to Thee
OFFERINGS OF THE PEOPLE
OFFERTORY
Not for Tongues of Heaven’s Angels
Summer Choir
Not for tongues of heaven’s angels, Not for wisdom to discern, Not for faith that masters mountains, For this better gift we yearn: May love be ours, O Lord.
Never jealous, never selfish, Love will not rejoice in wrong; Never boastful nor resentful, Love believes and suffers long: May love be ours, O Lord.
Timothy Dudley-Smith
Love is humble, love is gentle, Love is tender, true, and kind; Love is gracious, ever patient, Generous of heart and mind: May love be ours, O Lord.
In the day this world is fading Faith and hope will play their part; But when Christ is seen in glory Love shall reign in ev’ry heart: May love be ours, O Lord.
*PRAYER OF DEDICATION
GROWING
SCRIPTURE 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13 Page 1637 Pew Bible
SERMON “Oikonomia: Church Values” Rev. Jim Noble
*HYMN The Church’s One Foundation
*DOXOLOGY OLD HUNDREDTH
GOING
*BENEDICTION & RESPONSE Now unto Him
*POSTLUDE
Trumpet March
David N. Johnson
CORE VALUES
Our Core Beliefs: EPC Essentials (see back page)
Our Core Purpose: “To Glorify God and Enjoy His Presence Forever”
Our Motto: “More People, More Like Christ”
Our Core Principles:
-Love the Lord
-Keep God’s Word
-Love One Another
-Be a Blessing
Our Core Process and Mix: (101, 201, 301)
-Gathering - does this interest me?
-Caring - do I fit in and belong?
-Growing - does this make a difference in my life?
-Going - does this enable me to make a difference in someone else’s life?
Core Values of our Heritage:
-Caring Intergenerational Community
-Beauty in worship, the arts, and creation
-Deep Theological Truth
-Humble Mission Ventures
Our Core Practices:
-Private Worship
-Household Worship
-Community Worship
-Public Worship
Our Core Target Group - All who live within a 7-mile radius of the church.
Some Tools we use:
-The Lord’s Prayer
-The Ten Commandments
-The Apostles’ Creed
-The Bridge of Life
-The Wheel of Discipleship
-B.L.E.S.S.
-The Westminster Confession and Catechisms
-EPC Leadership Development Book
B.L.E.S.S.
-Be Prayerfully Present
-Listen Genuinely
-Encourage Frequently
-Serve Humbly
-Share Joyfully
All Scripture is self-attesting, and being Truth requires our unreserved submission in all areas of life. The infallible Word of God—the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments—is a complete and unified witness to God’s redemptive acts culminating in the incarnation of the Living Word, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible, uniquely and fully inspired by the Holy Spirit, is the supreme and final authority on all matters on which it speaks. On this sure foundation, we affirm these additional essentials of our faith.
1. We believe in one God, the sovereign Creator and Sustainer of all things, infinitely perfect and eternally existing in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. To Him be all honor, glory, and praise forever!
2. Jesus Christ, the living Word, became flesh through His miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit and His virgin birth. He who is true God became true man united in one Person forever. He died on the cross a sacrifice for our sins according to the Scriptures. On the third day He arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven where, at the right hand of the Majesty on High, He now is our High Priest and Mediator.
3. The Holy Spirit has come to glorify Christ and to apply the saving work of Christ to our hearts. He convicts us of sin and draws us to the Savior, indwelling our hearts. He gives new life to us, empowers and imparts gifts to us for service. He instructs and guides us into all truth, and seals us for the day of redemption.
4. Being estranged from God and condemned by our sinfulness, our salvation is wholly dependent upon the work of God’s free grace. God credits His righteousness to those who put their faith in Christ alone for their salvation, and thereby justifies them in His sight. Only such as are born of the Holy Spirit and receive Jesus Christ become children of God and heirs of eternal life.
5. The true Church is composed of all persons who through saving faith in Jesus Christ and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit are united together in the body of Christ. The Church finds her visible yet imperfect expression in local congregations where the Word of God is preached in its purity and the sacraments are administered in their integrity, where scriptural discipline is practiced, and where loving fellowship is maintained. For her perfecting she awaits the return of her Lord.
6. Jesus Christ will come again to the earth personally, visibly, and bodily—to judge the living and the dead, and to consummate history and the eternal plan of God. “Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20).
7. The Lord Jesus Christ commands all believers to proclaim the gospel throughout the world and to make disciples of all nations. Obedience to the Great Commission requires total commitment to “Him who loved us and gave Himself for us.” He calls us to a life of self-denying love and service. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).
The Essentials are set forth in greater detail in the Westminster Confession of Faith.
