December 17, 2017

We’re in the third week of Your Kingdom Come: Gospel Promises from Isaiah, our series for Advent. Read more about the season of Advent here! Here’s how you can prepare for this week:

1. Read through our text, Isaiah 40:1–11.

God is the God who announces ultimate comfort to His people. This comfort comes only from the Lord and happens only when the Glory of the Lord is revealed to all flesh. What is the glory of the Lord? It’s seen now in the incarnation, death, and resurrection of Jesus and seen ultimately in Jesus’ glorious return. Therefore, take comfort in the Lord who has come once, for He will come again!

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: The Lord’s Prayer, from Matthew 6:9–13

Come Thou Fount (Robert Robinson, John Wyeth)
Come Thou Long Expected Jesus (Robert J. Hughes, Charles Wesley, arr. Rain For Roots)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From Scotty Smith’s Every Season Prayers

Dear heavenly Father, with the angels, we shout loud praises over the birth of Jesus; with the shepherds, we respond with joy for the gift of a Savior; with Mary, we treasure and ponder this good news in our hearts. You have been faithful to fulfill ancient prophecies and Your covenant promises. Because of Jesus’ finished work, we now live in Your perpetual favor; and because of the Spirit’s ongoing work, we now humble ourselves before You.

We confess our sins to You: Forgive us for attitudes and actions that misrepresent You, contradict Your grace, and sabotage love. Forgive us for speaking words that brought harm and shame, and for withholding words that bring healing and hope. Forgive us for spending so much time and energy on ourselves and our trifles, and so little time with You and on the things that matter the most. We offer our prayer, humbly, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Hallelujah, What A Savior (Philip P. Bliss, arr. Austin Stone)

Build My Life (Barrett, Kable, Martin, Redman, Younker)

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Romans 8:31–39

THE APOSTLES’ CREED:

I believe in God the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth,
And in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, our Lord:

Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost,
born of the Virgin Mary,
Suffered under Pontius Pilate;
was crucified, dead and buried;
He descended into hell.

The third day He rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven,
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost;
I believe in the holy catholic church;
the communion of saints;
The forgiveness of sins;
The resurrection of the body;
And the life everlasting.
Amen.

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

Jesus Paid It All (Elvina Hall, Kristian Stanfill)
Joy To The World (Isaac Watts)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

December 10, 2017

We’re in the second week of Your Kingdom Come: Gospel Promises from Isaiah, our series for Advent. Read more about the season of Advent here! Here’s how you can prepare for this week:

1. Read through our text, Isaiah 35:1–10.

We often speak of “longing” during the Season of Advent—we look at the way things are and honestly say, “This is not the way this is supposed to be,” while we look at our King, Jesus, and say, “Come again, Lord, and make these things the way they are supposed to be!” Our text this week, not unlike Isaiah 11:6–9 last week, answers the question, “How are things supposed to be?” It’s a dream—wide-awake and truth-informed—of the Kingdom come.

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: The Lord’s Prayer, from Matthew 6:9–13

O Come, O Come Emmanuel (John Neale, Henry Coffin, arr. Chichi Agorom, The Christian Year)
Rejoice The Lord Is King (Joel Limpic, Charles Wesley)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From Scotty Smith’s Every Season Prayers

Almighty and most merciful Father,
we begin the season of Advent with the brokenness of the world in our eyes,
the cries of our neighbors in our ears,
and the reality of our sin in our hearts.
Thus, we look to Jesus—the author and perfecter of our faith;
sacrifice and priest of our salvation;
Lord and restorer of all things.
By Your grace, and for Your glory, forgive our sins and renew our hearts.
Help us to move through a worldly holiday of excess
unto a worshipful Advent and Christmas.
Help us to love as You love us, forgive as we’ve been forgiven,
and freely give as we have freely received.
In Jesus’ name we pray.
Amen.

Wash Me Clean (David Wilton)

His Mercy Is More (Matt Boswell, Matt Papa)

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Isaiah 25:6–9

THE APOSTLES’ CREED:

I believe in God the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth,
And in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, our Lord:

Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost,
born of the Virgin Mary,
Suffered under Pontius Pilate;
was crucified, dead and buried;
He descended into hell.

The third day he rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven,
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
From thence he shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost;
I believe in the holy catholic church;
the communion of saints;
The forgiveness of sins;
The resurrection of the body;
And the life everlasting.
Amen.

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

Advent Song (Charlie Hall, Joel Limpic)
We Will Feast In The House Of Zion (Sandra McCracken)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

December 3, 2017

This is the first week of Advent, the season that includes the four Sundays leading up to Christmas. Advent is a season of waiting and longing, designed to help us cultivate awareness of God’s actions—past, present, and future. While we hear the Messianic prophecies of old and reflect that we have seen them fulfilled in Christ’s first coming, we also hear the prophecies of His second coming and cry out from our hearts for His return! Our series for Advent is called Your Kingdom Come: Gospel Promises from Isaiah. Here’s how you can prepare for week one:

1. Read through our text, Isaiah 11:1–11.

The season of Advent can help Christians to cultivate stale desires and reorient misguided desires. Through promises made in Isaiah—kept through Christ—we want our hearts stirred to long for Jesus above all other things.

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: From Matthew 6:9–13

O Come, O Come Emmanuel (John Neale, Henry Coffin, arr. Chichi Agorom, The Christian Year)
Come Thou Fount (Robert Robinson, John Wyeth)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From Scotty Smith’s Every Season Prayers

Dear heavenly Father, as we begin the season of Advent,
we rejoice in the gift of Your Son, Jesus—
Immanuel, God with us and God for us.
Even as we trust in His finished work,
we long for the fullness of Jesus’ kingdom.
Until that day, grant us power to grow in the love of Christ.
For we are weak and foolishly prone
to look to people, places, and things to fill us up.
Grant us grace to mature in the likeness of Jesus.
For we are broken, and we cannot change our hearts,
left to our own resources.
Grant us joy in living to the praise of Your glory.
For we are deceived, and we spend too much energy
living for comfort and the approval of people.
Have mercy on us, O Lord; have mercy on me.
In Jesus’ loving and trustworthy name we pray.
Amen.

Lord I Need You (Carson, Maher, Nockels, Reeves, Stanfill)

Oh Praise The Name (Anástasis) (Benjamin Hastings, Marty Sampson, Dean Ussher)

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: 1 Corinthians 1:4–9

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

Come Thou Long Expected Jesus (Charles Wesley)
Build My Life (Younker, Martin, Kable, Redman, Barrett)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

November 26, 2017

This is the third and final week of The Spirit and the Church, a follow-up series to The Book of Acts: You Will Be My Witnesses. We’re exploring the role of the Holy Spirit in the mission of the Church—here’s how you can prepare:

1. Read through our text, 1 Corinthians 14:1–33.

All of the gifts of the Spirit found in the New Testament are to be earnestly desired by every believer and in turn exercised lovingly, intelligibly, and in an orderly fashion. When we faithfully follow the guidelines Paul gives us pertaining to the gifts, the gathered church is naturally built up and those outside the church say, “Surely God is among them!”

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: From Psalm 100

Great Is Thy Faithfulness (Thomas Obediah Chisholm, William Marion Runyan)
Fall Afresh (Jeremy Riddle)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From The Worship Sourcebook

Triune God,
we praise You as the God of love and life.
Though Jesus prayed that we would be one,
we confess that we fail to live in unity
with each other and with You.
We break our communion through hostile words and unkind actions.
We long for Your Spirit to heal us and to correct us.
We long for You to help us experience communion
with You and with each other
as we gather around Your Word and table.
Even now, dependent on Your grace,
we commit ourselves to live more fully in the unity You desire.
Through Christ, our Lord, Amen.

Give Us Clean Hands (Charlie Hall)

How Marvelous (I Stand Amazed) (Charles H. Gabriel)

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Hebrews 4:11–13

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God (Martin Luther)
Doxology (Louis Bourgeois, Thomas Ken)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

November 19, 2017

We’re in week two of The Spirit and the Church, our three-week follow-up to The Book of Acts: You Will Be My Witnesses where we’re discussing the work of the Holy Spirit in the Church’s mission. Here’s how you can prepare for this week:

1. Read through our text, 1 Corinthians 12–13.

The text teaches us that Jesus gives His church diverse gifts of the Spirit so that we can embody the love of God for the good of all people.

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: From James 1:16–18

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God (Matt Boswell, Martin Luther)
O Praise The Name (Anástasis) (Benjamin Hastings, Marty Sampson, Dean Ussher)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From The Worship Sourcebook

Almighty God,
who sent the promised power of the Holy Spirit
to fill disciples with willing faith:
We confess that we resist the force of Your Spirit among us,
that we are slow to serve You
and reluctant to spread the good news of Your love.
God, have mercy on us.
Forgive our divisions
and by Your Spirit draw us together.
Inflame us with a desire to do Your will
and be Your faithful people
for the sake of Your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Amen.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Romans 8:14–17

No Longer Slaves (Joel Case, Jonathan David Hesler, Brian Johnson)
Revive Us Again (Charlie Hall, John J. Husband, William P. Mackay, Dustin Ragland)

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

Fall Afresh (Jeremy Riddle)
Set A Fire (Will Reagan)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

November 12, 2017

After completing The Book of Acts: You Will Be My Witnesses last week at Park, we’ll take the next three weeks to build and expand on Acts with an exploration of The Spirit and the Church before getting into Advent. Here’s how you can prepare this week:

1. Spend some time reviewing the work of the Spirit in the book of Acts.

The Holy Spirit is a powerful and central actor throughout the book of Acts. We see Him do many clear and otherwise-inexplicable works, from navigating Paul on his journey to raising dead people. Who is He, the Holy Ghost? What is His role in the Church of Jesus Christ as demonstrated in the book of Acts?

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: From Joel 2:28–29; 32

God The Spirit (Matt Boswell, Samuel John Stone)
Doxology (Amen) (Louis Bourgeois, Thomas Ken, Phil Wickham)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From The Worship Sourcebook

Gracious God,
who pours out freely the gift of Your Holy Spirit:
we confess before You and to each other
that we have failed to recognize this most precious gift.
We have been satisfied with ordinary things,
suspicious of unfamiliar things,
and blind to spiritual things.
Cleanse us, O God, with Your celestial fire.
Burn away our presumptuous self-sufficiency,
and open us in faith to receive the renewing touch of Your hand.
Amen.

Lord I Need You (Carson, Maher, Nockels, Reeves, Stanfill)

Jesus We Love You (Kalley Heiligenthal, Hannah McClure, Paul McClure)

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Romans 8:1–2; 11

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

Breath Of God (Caroline Cobb)
Revive Us Again (Charlie Hall, John J. Husband, William P. Mackay, Dustin Ragland)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

November 5, 2017

This Sunday at Park Church, we’ll be in our 36th and final week of The Book of Acts: You Will Be My Witnesses. Here’s how you can prepare for worship this week:

1. Read through our text, Acts 28:11–31.

This Gospel is the reality that King Jesus lived a life that Paul never could have lived and died a death that Paul deserved to die. He rose again to conquer the power of sin and death, giving us new life in Him. And now, He is building a Kingdom made of all languages, tribes, and nations. Jesus is a good King, and God’s Kingdom is for all people.

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: Isaiah 6:1–3

Praise To The Lord The Almighty (Joachim Neander, arr. Citizens)
Great Is The Lord (Joseph Pat Barrett, Daniel Bashta, Ben Smith)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From Yet I Sin in The Valley of Vision

Thou art good beyond all thought,
But I am vile, wretched, miserable, blind;
My lips are ready to confess,
but my heart is slow to feel,
and my ways reluctant to amend.
I bring my soul to thee;
break it, wound it, bend it, mould it.
Unmask to me sin’s deformity,
that I may hate it, abhor it, flee from it.
My faculties have been a weapon of revolt against thee;
as a rebel I have misused my strength,
and served the foul adversary of thy kingdom.

All these sins I mourn, lament, and for them cry pardon.
Work in me more profound and abiding repentance;
Give me the fullness of a godly grief that trembles and fears,
yet ever trusts and loves,
which is ever powerful, and ever confident;
Grant that through the tears of repentance
I may see more clearly the brightness
and glories of the saving cross.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: From Isaiah 6:6–7, Acts 13:38, Ephesians 1:7:

Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”

Through Jesus Christ forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. In Christ we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.

His Mercy Is More (Matt Boswell, Matt Papa)
Oh Praise The Name (Anástasis) (Benjamin Hastings, Marty Sampson, Dean Ussher)

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

Grace Alone (Dustin Kensrue)
Build My Life (Barrett, Kable, Martin, Redman, Younker)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

October 29, 2017

This is week 35 of The Book of Acts: You Will Be My Witnesses—we’re nearing the end of the book! Here’s how you can prepare for worship this week:

1. Read through our text, Acts 27:1–28:10.

By the Holy Spirit and angelic visitation, Paul is enabled by God to help a boat with 276 passengers (among whom he’s being held as a prisoner) avoid being lost at sea. They shipwreck on an island called Malta, where the locals welcome and accommodate them for three days. Miracles happen to and through Paul that lead many to see the power of God. By the Spirit and the word of God to him, Paul’s unshakeable hope in the Gospel of Jesus anchors his soul and brings glory to God in the tempest.

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: Psalm 46

How Firm A Foundation (Author Unknown)
Oceans (Where Feet May Fail) (Matt Crocker, Joel Houston, Salomon Ligthelm arr. Charlie Hall)

CONFESSION OF SIN: Jeremiah 10:23–24

Lord I Need You (Carson, Maher, Nockels, Reeves, Stanfill)

His Mercy Is More (Matt Boswell, Matt Papa)

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Isaiah 54:7–10

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

Waves And Billows Thine (Megan James, Henry March, JD Raab)
On Christ The Solid Rock (William Batchelder Bradbury and Edward Mote, arr. Austin Stone)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

October 22, 2017

We’re in week 34 of The Book of Acts: You Will Be My Witnesses. Here’s how you can prepare for worship:

1. Read through our text, Acts 23:23—26:32.

Paul’s journey continues as a prisoner for the Gospel, taking him all the way to King Agrippa, one of the rulers of the Roman Empire. Through many accusations, questions, and potential death sentences, Paul’s message is unflinching: “To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, He would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles” (v. 26:22–23).

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: Psalm 148:1–6

All Creatures Of Our God And King (William Henry Draper, St. Francis of Assisi)
Yes And Amen (Anthony Brown, Chris McClarney, Nate Moore)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From The Worship Sourcebook

Almighty God, You have raised Jesus from the grave
and crowned Him Lord of all.
We confess that we have not bowed before Him
or acknowledged His rule in our lives.
We have gone along with the way of the world
and failed to give Him glory.
Forgive us and raise us from sin,
that we may be Your faithful people,
obeying the commands of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who rules the world and is head of the church, His body.
Amen.

How Majestic (Brian Eichelberger)

It Is Well With My Soul (Horatio G. Spafford, Philip P. Bliss)

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

O Praise The Name (Anástasis) (Benjamin Hastings, Marty Sampson, Dean Ussher)
In Christ Alone (Keith Getty, Stuart Townend)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday

October 15, 2017

This week at Park Church we’re in week 33 of The Book of Acts: You Will Be My Witnesses. Here’s how you can prepare for worship:

1. Read through our text, Acts 21:1–23:22.

Paul arrives in Jerusalem prepared to advance the Gospel at whatever cost. A lot of ground is covered in the narrative, but Paul is beat by an angry mob, imprisoned, and nearly whipped by the Romans, all the while preaching the Gospel boldly to many people in the power of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit empowers the people of God to sacrificially engage in the mission of God.

2. Read, pray and sing through the service:

CALL TO WORSHIP: Psalm 100

Before The Throne (Charitie Lees Bancroft, arr. The Modern Post)
How Majestic (Brian Eichelberger)

CONFESSION OF SIN: From The Worship Sourcebook

Eternal God, we confess that often we have failed
to be an obedient church:
we have not done Your will;
we have broken Your law;
we have rebelled against Your love;
we have not loved our neighbors;
we have not heard the cry of the needy.
Forgive us, we pray.
Free us for joyful obedience.
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen.

Oceans (Where Feet May Fail) (Matt Crocker, Joel Houston, Salomon Ligthelm)

Man Of Sorrows (Matt Crocker, Brooke Ligertwood)

ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Galatians 4:4–7

GREETING, SERMON, & COMMUNION
RESPONSE: Song & Prayer

Come Lord Jesus (Dustin Kensrue)
Jesus Is Better (Aaron Ivey, Brett Land)

BENEDICTION

in Preparing for Sunday