:: Download the 5.18.2014 Worship Study Guide & Sermon Notes
:: Download the 5.18.2014 Bulletin
:: Download the 5.18.2014 Parent Bulletin
:: Download the 5.18.2014 Sermon Audio
image :: No.9 (Dark over Light Earth), Mark Rothko (1954, American)
Preparation for Worship :: Partners
“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.” (C.S. Lewis)
“Desire is an ache for completion…We want heaven, and every desire is a puzzle piece that when put in place reveals the glory of God’s coming.” (Dan Allender)
“God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator.” (Romans 1:24-25)
Psalms, Hymns & Spiritual Songs for May 18
:: Arise, O God, and Shine (Hum, 1813) history // chart // audio
:: Dayspring (Wesley, 1740) history // chart // audio
:: None Other Lamb (Rossetti, b.1830) history // chart // audio
:: Here O My Lord (Bonar, 1855) history // chart // audio
:: Grace Upon Grace (McCracken, 2005) history // chart // audio
:: I Cry Out (Musseau, 1990) history // chart
:: Immortal, Invisible (Smith, 1867) history // chart // audio
Call to Worship :: Isaiah 51:1-3
Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the Lord: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you; for he was but one when I called him, that I might bless him and multiply him. For the Lord comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places and makes her wilderness like Eden, her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song.
Old Testament Reading :: Psalm 98:1-3
Sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done marvelous things; His right hand and His holy arm have worked salvation for Him. The Lord has made His salvation known and revealed His righteousness to the nations. He has remembered His love and His faithfulness to Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Sermon :: Ephesians 5:1-21
1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
We Confess Our Sin Together
O Lord, we desperately need You and the forgiveness You offer. You have called us to be Your people and to live for Your glory. But we have sinned against You. We have not believed we are Your holy people. We have not trusted You as beloved children, marked by Your glory and purposes. We have lived as if only we mattered, and all of our passions are out of order. Mercifully forgive us all our sins for Jesus’ sake and renew us in Your redeeming love. Amen.
Words of Encouragement :: I John 4:9-10
This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.