Which of These Three Was a Neighbor to the Man?

January 8, 2023
Pastor Jacob Lee
Worship

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Service of Worship

Andante Religioso from Sonata No.4 op65
Felix Mendelssohn
Public Domain

Litany – “Lord, I Want to Be a Christian”

People: (Sing). Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart, in my heart. Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.

Leader: You alone can change me, Lord. Wash me in the waters of baptism that I may become a new person. Wash away everything that stands between me and your holiness.

People:(Sing). In my heart, in my heart. Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.

Leader: You alone can change me, Lord. Wash away this temper that gets me into more trouble than I can handle. Wash away the massive wants that place me in constant financial jeopardy.

People: (Sing) In my heart, in my heart. Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.

Leader: You alone can change me, Lord. Wash away my envy that separates me from the people I should love. Wash away everything that stands between me and your holiness.

People: (Sing) Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart, in my heart. Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.

Leader: You alone can change me, Lord. Wash me with your cleansing power that I may be a child of God. You alone can change me, Lord.

People: (Sing) Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart, in my heart. Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.

(Kwasi I. Kena, The Africana Worship Book, Year A, Discipleship Resources, 2006)

Opening Hymn — #79 “Holy God We Praise Thy Name” (v. 1–4)

1. Holy God, we praise thy name;
Lord of all, we bow before thee;
all on earth thy scepter claim;
all in heaven above adore thee.
Infinite thy vast domain;
everlasting is thy reign.

2. Hark, the glad celestial hymn
angel choirs above are raising;
cherubim and seraphim,
in unceasing chorus praising,
fill the heavens with sweet accord:
Holy, holy, holy Lord.

3. Lo! the apostolic train
joins thy sacred name to hallow;
prophets swell the glad refrain,
and the white-robed martyrs follow.
And from morn to set of sun,
through the church the song goes on.

4. Holy Father, Holy Son,
Holy Spirit: three we name thee,
though in essence only one;
undivided God we claim thee,
and adoring bend the knee
while we own the mystery.

Holy God We Praise Thy Name
Clarence Augustus Walworth | Ignaz Franz | Katholisches Gesangbuch
Public Domain

Pastor’s Time With the Children

Joys and Concerns, Pastoral Prayer, 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 trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and glory forever. Amen.

For those who are called and able, gifts and tithes can still be made through online giving, by mailing them in, and by dropping them off to the office through the secure mail slot to the left of the double door entry to the church hallway.

Offertory – Megumi Komori

Prelude
Anatoly Lyadov
Public Domain

Doxology

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
praise him, all creatures here below;
praise him above, ye heavenly host;
praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow (Old 100th)
Louis Bourgeois | Thomas Ken
Public Domain

Offertory Prayer

God of the water that cleans us, the land that feeds us, and the air that allows us to breathe your Spirit in and out of us; you claim us in our baptism, but too few of us even remember our own baptism. And if we remember our baptism, we too rarely grasp its meaning and power. As we present our tithes and offerings in worship and witness Christ’s baptism once again, may we remember that in that water we were, like Christ, commissioned to go: to teach, preach, heal, and even to take up a cross. In Christ, we pray. Amen.

(Matthew 3:13-17)

Scripture Reading — Luke 10:25-37 (NRSV)

25 Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus.a “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” 27 He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.”

29 But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii,a gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Response
The Word of the Lord:
Thanks be to God.

Anthem — Chancel Choir

Sermon — Rev. Jacob Lee
“Which of These Three Was a Neighbor to the Man?”

Closing Hymn — #369 “Blessed Assurance”

1. Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
born of his Spirit, washed in his blood.

Refrain
This is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long;
this is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long.

2. Perfect submission, perfect delight,
visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
angels descending bring from above
echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Refrain

3. Perfect submission, all is at rest;
I in my Savior am happy and blest,
watching and waiting, looking above,
filled with his goodness, lost in his love.

Refrain

Blessed Assurance
Fanny Jane Crosby | Phoebe Palmer Knapp
Public Domain

Benediction

Postlude – Hani

Prelude from Te Deum
Marc-Antoine Charpentier
Public Domain