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Call to Worship
Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” 8 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
9 Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.”
Revelation 19:7-9
Hymn – Come, People of the Risen King
1 Come, people of the Risen King
Who delight to bring Him praise
Come all and tune your hearts to sing
To the Morning Star of grace
From the shifting shadows of the earth
We will lift our eyes to Him
Where steady arms of mercy reach
To gather children in
Refrain
Rejoice, rejoice! Let ev’ry tongue rejoice!
One heart, one voice; oh Church of Christ, rejoice!
2 Come, those whose joy is morning sun
And those weeping through the night
Come, those who tell of battles won
And those struggling in the fight
For His perfect love will never change
And His mercies never cease
But follow us through all our days
With the certain hope of peace
[Refrain]
3 Come, young and old from ev’ry land
Men and women of the faith
Come, those with full or empty hands
Find the riches of His grace
Over all the world, His people sing
Shore to shore we hear them call
The Truth that cries through ev’ry age:
"Our God is all in all"!
[Refrain]
Call To Confession
Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For,
“Whoever would love life and see good days
must keep their tongue from evil
and their lips from deceitful speech.
They must turn from evil and do good;
they must seek peace and pursue it.
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
1 Peter 3:8–12 citing Psalm 34:12-16 (NIV):
Confession of Sins
Let us pray to the Lord confessing our sin, saying together:
Do not withhold your mercy from me, Lord;
may your love and faithfulness always protect me.
For troubles without number surround me;
my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart fails within me.
Be pleased to save me, Lord;
come quickly, Lord, to help me.
Psalm 40:11–13 (NIV)
Word of Comfort
As we are weary and burdened by our sin and our troubles, our Lord Jesus says to us:
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Matthew 11:28–30 (NIV)
Song of Renewal
Jesus! I do now receive him,
more than all in him I find;
he hath granted me forgiveness,
I am his, and he is mine.
Hallelujah! what a Savior!
Hallelujah, what a Friend!
Saving, helping, keeping, loving,
he is with me to the end.
Trinity Hymnal # 498, stanza 5
Scripture Lesson:
Genesis 2:15-25; Ephesians 2:18-22; Mark 10:2-9
Genesis 2:15-25
Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”
18 And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.” 19 Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him.
21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. 22 Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.
23 And Adam said:
“This is now bone of my bonesAnd flesh of my flesh;She shall be called Woman,Because she was taken out of Man.”
24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
Ephesians 2:18-22
For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
Mark 10:2-9
The Pharisees came and asked Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” testing Him.
3 And He answered and said to them, “What did Moses command you?”
4 They said, “Moses permitted a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to dismiss her.”
5 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Because of the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. 6 But from the beginning of the creation, God ‘made them male and female.’ 7 ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh’; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”
Sermon
Hymn # 421 Soul, Adorn Yourself with Gladness
1 Soul, adorn yourself with gladness,
leave the gloomy haunts of sadness,
come into the daylight's splendor,
there with joy your praises render.
Bless the One whose grace unbounded
this amazing banquet founded;
he, though heav'nly, high, and holy,
deigns to dwell with you most lowly.
2 Hasten as a bride to meet him,
eagerly and gladly greet him.
There he stands already knocking;
quickly, now, your gate unlocking,
open wide the fast-closed portal,
saying to the Lord immortal:
"Come, and leave your loved one never;
dwell within my heart forever."
3 Now in faith I humbly ponder
over this surpassing wonder
that the bread of life is boundless
though the souls it feeds are countless;
with the choicest wine of heaven
Christ's own blood to us is given.
Oh, most glorious consolation,
pledge and seal of my salvation.
4 Jesus, source of lasting pleasure,
truest friend and dearest treasure,
peace beyond all understanding,
joy into all life expanding:
humbly now, I bow before you,
love incarnate, I adore you;
worthily let me receive you,
and, so favored, never leave you.
Prayer of the Church and 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 forever. Amen.”
Hymn # 320 Rejoice, All Ye Believers
1 Rejoice, all ye believers,
and let your lights appear;
the evening is advancing,
and darker night is near:
the Bridegroom is arising,
and soon he draweth nigh;
up, pray, and watch, and wrestle:
at midnight comes the cry.
2 See that your lamps are burning;
replenish them with oil;
and wait for your salvation,
the end of earthly toil.
The watchers on the mountain
proclaim the Bridegroom near;
go meet him as he cometh,
with alleluias clear.
3 Ye saints, who here in patience
your cross and suff'rings bore,
shall live and reign forever,
when sorrow is no more:
around the throne of glory
the Lamb ye shall behold,
in triumph cast before him
your diadems of gold.
4 Our hope and expectation,
O Jesus, now appear;
arise, thou sun so longed for,
o'er this benighted sphere.
With hearts and hands uplifted,
we plead, O Lord to see
the day of earth's redemption
that brings us unto thee.
Benediction
