HOPE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
August 17, 2008
www.hopewl.com
GATHERING
Prelude
Announcements
Call to Worship
Greeting (See Ruth 2:4)
The Lord be with you. And also with you.
Heb. 4:12 (Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time)
The word of God is living and active, it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Call to Worship (responsive)
Come let us worship God, rejoicing in God's loving care for us.
We bring all our differences and yet we worship together in unity.
God is merciful to all. O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!
Through God all things are made. Let us worship God.
Prayer of the Day (all)
Almighty God, you have broken the tyranny of sin and sent the Spirit of your Son into our hearts. Give us grace to dedicate our freedom to your service, that all people may know the glorious liberty of the children of God; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Opening Hymn
Confession and Pardon
Invitation to Confession
If we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
God, be merciful to me, a sinner. N., join me in a prayer of confession. 1 John 1:9
Confession: Merciful God, in your... (all)
Merciful God, in your gracious presence we confess our sin and the sin of this world.
Although Christ is among us as our peace, we are a people divided against ourselves as we cling to the values of a broken world. The profit and pleasures we pursue lay waste the land and pollute the seas. The fears and jealousies that we harbor set neighbor against neighbor
and nation against nation. We abuse your good gifts of imagination and freedom, of intellect and reason, and have turned them into bonds of oppression. Lord, have mercy upon us; heal and forgive us. Set us free to serve you in the world as agents of your reconciling love in Jesus Christ.
Declaration of Forgiveness
The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting. I declare to you, in the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven. May the God of mercy, who forgives you all your sins,
strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life.
Amen.
The Peace
Since God has forgiven us in Christ, let us forgive one another.
The peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. And also with you.
Gloria Patri
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.
THE WORD
Prayer for illumination
O Lord our God, your Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Give us grace to receive your truth in faith and love, that we may be obedient to your will and live always for your glory; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
Lectionary Psalm: Ps. 133
How very good and pleasant it is
when kindred live together in unity!
It is like the precious oil on the head,
running down upon the beard,
on the beard of Aaron,
running down over the collar of his robes.
It is like the dew of Hermon,
which falls on the mountains of Zion.
For there the Lord ordained his blessing,
life forevermore.
Gospel: Matt. 15:10-28
Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, "Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles." Then the disciples approached and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?" He answered, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit." But Peter said to him, "Explain this parable to us." Then he said, "Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile."
Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon." But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, "Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us." He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." He answered, "It is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." Then Jesus answered her, "Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed instantly.
Sermon
Hymn
Affirmation of Faith Apostles' Creed (all)
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, our Lord. who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come again to judge the living 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.
Prayers of the People
THE EUCHARIST
Offering
Scriptural Sentences: Heb. 13-16
Let us return to God the offerings of our life and the gifts of the earth.
Do good and share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
Offertory
Doxology
Concluding prayer (all)
Blessed are you, God of all creation; through your goodness we have these gifts to share.
Accept and use our offering for your glory and for the service of your kingdom.
Blessed be God forever.
Invitation to the Lord's Table (Holy Communion)
According to Luke, when our risen Lord was at table with his disciples, he took the bread, and blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him. Luke 24:30, 31
Great Thanksgiving (Holy Communion)
The Lord be with you. And also with you.
Lift up your hearts. We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right to give our thanks and praise.
The minister says:
Holy God, we praise you. Let the heavens be joyful, and the earth be glad.
We bless you for creating the whole world, for your promises to your people Israel,
and for Jesus Christ in whom your fullness dwells.
Born of Mary, he shares our life. Eating with sinners, he welcomes us. Guiding his children, he leads us. Visiting the sick, he heals us. Dying on the cross, he saves us. Risen from the dead, he gives new life. Living with you, he prays for us.
Therefore we praise you, joining our voices with choirs of angels and with all the faithful of every time and place, who forever sing to the glory of your name:
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.
With thanksgiving we take this bread and this cup and proclaim the death and resurrection of our Lord. Receive our sacrifice of praise.
Pour out your Holy Spirit upon us that this meal may be a communion in the body and blood of our Lord. Make us one with Christ and with all who share this feast.
Unite us in faith, encourage us with hope, inspire us to love, that we may serve as your faithful disciples until we feast at your table in glory.
We praise you, eternal God, through Christ your Word made flesh, in the holy and life-giving Spirit, now and forever. Amen.
Lord's Prayer
Breaking of the Bread The Lord Jesus, on the night of his arrest, took bread…
Communion of the People
Invitation
Creator of all, just as this broken bread was first scattered upon the hills, then was gathered and became one, so may your church be gathered from the ends of the earth into your kingdom.
Communion
Prayer After Communion (all)
We thank you, O God, that through Word and Sacrament you have given us your Son,
who is the true bread from heaven and food of eternal life. So strengthen us in your service
that our daily living may show our thankful praise; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
SENDING
Closing Hymn
Charge and Blessing
Charge: Go in peace...
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Alleluia! Amen.
Blessing: The Lord...
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord be kind and gracious to you.
The Lord look upon you with favor
and give you peace.
Alleluia! Amen.
See Num. 6:24-26
Song of Hope
Postlude and Blessing Circle
