:: Download the 5.11.2014 Worship Study Guide & Sermon Notes
:: Download the 5.11.2014 Bulletin
:: Download the 5.11.2014 Parent Bulletin
:: Download the 5.11.2014 Sermon Audio
image :: The Mill, Rembrandt van Rijn (Dutch, c.1650)
Preparation for Worship :: Christ Will Shine
“The One on whom we wait is a dissatisfied Messiah. He will not relent, He will not quit, He will not rest until every promise He has made been fully delivered. He will not turn from his work until every one of his children has been totally transformed. He will continue to fight until the last enemy is under His feet. He will reign until His Kingdom has fully come. As long as sin exists, He will shower us with forgiving, empowering, and delivering grace.” (Paul David Tripp)
Psalms, Hymns & Spiritual Songs for May 11
:: Let The Glory of the Lord Endure Forever (Chrysler, 1979) chart
:: Help My Unbelief (Newton, 1791) chart // audio
:: God, Be Merciful To Me (Psalm 51, Scottish Psalter) chart // audio
:: Narrow Little Road (Leverett, 1995) chart // audio
:: Upon a Life I Did Not Live (Bonar, 1881) chart // audio
:: In Christ Alone (Getty, 2002) chart // audio
Call to Worship :: Isaiah 9:2; 60:1-3; 2:5
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone… Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and His glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising… O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord.
Old Testament Reading :: Psalm 139:1-12
O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light about me be night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is bright as the day, for darkness is as light with you.
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 :: Adapted from The Belgic Confession, Article 14: “The Creation and Fall of Man” (1561)
Lord, You created man from the dust of the earth and made and formed him in Your image and likeness— good, just, and holy; we were able by our own will to conform in all things to Your perfect will. But when we were in honor we did not understand it, and we did not recognize our excellence. We subjected ourselves willingly to sin and consequently to death and the curse, listening to the word of the devil. For we transgressed the commandment of life, which we had received, and by our sin we separated ourselves from You, our true Life, and we corrupted our entire nature. So we made ourselves guilty and subject to physical and spiritual death, we became wicked, perverse, and corrupt in all our ways. We forfeited all the excellent gifts which we had received from Your hand, and we retained none of them except for small traces which are enough to make us inexcusable. Moreover, all the light in us is turned to darkness, as the Scripture teaches us: “The light shone in the darkness, and the darkness did not receive it.” Here John calls all of us “darkness.” Lord, have mercy upon us. Christ, have mercy upon us. Lord, have mercy upon us.
Words of Encouragement :: I John 1:5-7
This is the message we have heard from Him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with Him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.