Sunday Evening Worship Service, April 19, 2020
Beloved Congregation of Seacrest,
We are continuing to worship together through either the services posted on our website or through Zoom. You can get both video and Audio by connecting to your Zoom App and typing in the ID Number. Or you can dial into Zoom, type in the ID Number and listen over your phone. The information for Zoom is available through an email sent out by the church office last week. That ID number will be the same for this week.
We are also continuing to post the worship service format on the web-site, with an audio recording of the Sermon. (www.seacrestchurch.com)
So whether we are together or apart, we will be worshipping the Lord our God in unity, joining in a chorus of praise to God.
You do not have to use this format, God did not prescribe a fixed format for worship. But we believe the following elements ought to be present in our worship and we hope that this format will prove to be a helpful tool. The goal of our worship is the glory of God.
Call to Worship: On your own, or together with your family, read the call to worship. You may find it beneficial to read it out loud. Let the words of the Scripture draw your heart and mind near to God.
Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
3 For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
5 The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land. (Psalm 95:1-5 ESV)
Invocation: Spend a few minutes in prayer. The word invocation comes from a Latin word invocare which means to call upon or to appeal to. So in the invocation, we call upon our Father (Matthew 6:9), acknowledging that He is God, confessing that we trust Him. Ask Him to lead you by his Spirit in worship through the intercession of Jesus Christ.
Sing: Singing is an important part of worship. God desires it, (Psalm 96:1-2). We will be including the words of several familiar hymns. I urge you to lift up your voice and Sing to the Lord, bless his name, tell of his salvation from day to day.
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
By William Williams
Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barren land;
I am weak, but Thou art mighty,
Hold me with Thy pow’rful hand;
Bread of heaven, Bread of heaven,
Feed me till I want no more,
Feed me till I want no more.
Open now the crystal fountain,
Whence the healing stream doth flow;
Let the fire and cloudy pillar
Lead me all my journey through.
Strong Deliv’rer, strong Deliv’rer,
Be Thou still my Strength and Shield;
Be Thou still my Strength and Shield.
When I tread the verge of Jordan,
Bid my anxious fears subside;
Death of death and hell’s Destruction,
Land me safe on Canaan’s side.
Songs of praises, songs of praises,
I will ever give to Thee;
I will ever give to Thee.
Prayer: Take time for extended prayer. Don’t forget, prayer is talking with God just as you would talk with an earthly parent who loves you, (See Matthew 6:9-15). There is a model that God’s people have used for may years that gives a helpful outline for your prayer. It has been called the ACTS Model: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication.
- Adoration: Begin your time of prayer by praising God. Praise Him for who he is and for all that he has done. (See Psalm 150 for an example)
- Confession: Confession is the act of agreeing with God about the things that we have done wrong. It is acknowledging what we have done that is displeasing to God. It includes things done, and things left undone. It includes our words, thoughts and actions. Confess them and ask God to forgive you. Be assured of his promise: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 Jn. 1:9 ESV)
- Thanksgiving: Take time to be thankful to God. Sometimes in times of crisis such as these we forget to thank God for his many blessings. Thank him for your salvation, for his steadfast love, for his protection, his peace and provision, for our Seacrest Church family, to suggest a few things.
- Supplication: This is when you pray regarding your needs and the needs of others. Prayer for your family, your friends, your pastor, elders and deacons, missionaries, those who are ill. Pray for the spread of the gospel, and the building up of followers of Christ. This is also a time when you would pray concerning what is going on in the world, praying for those in authority, the Coronavirus pandemic. This is also a time to pray for God’s guidance, wisdom, protection, and opportunities to serve Him.
Give: God calls upon his people to give at least a tithe of our income and other offerings to the work of the Lord through the Church of Jesus Christ. By doing so we acknowledge that God is the Lord of our life, and that all that we have has come from his hand. We have recently made available Online Giving at Seacrest. You can do so by going to https://seacrest.breezechms.com/give/online, and following the directions.
Scripture Reading: We will be posting the Scripture passage that the sermon will be drawn from. Don’t forget, as I have often reminded you, God speaks most directly to his people when His Word is read. Take your time as you read the Scripture. You may find it helpful to read it out loud, (See Psalm 1).
Numbers 1:1-4
The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “Take a census of all the congregation of the people of Israel, by clans, by fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male, head by head. 3 From twenty years old and upward, all in Israel who are able to go to war, you and Aaron shall list them, company by company. 4 And there shall be with you a man from each tribe, each man being the head of the house of his fathers.
Click HERE to listen to the sermon.
The Text: Numbers 1:1-4
The Title: In the Wilderness: Why Numbers
Pray: Pray for your understanding of God’s Word and for wisdom and ability to believe what the Word of God says we should believe, and to do what the Word of God says we should do.
Sing: Close your time of worship with prayer.
Trust and Obey
By John H Sammis
When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
[CHORUS]
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
Not a shadow can rise, not a cloud in the skies,
But His smile quickly drives it away;
Not a doubt or a fear, not a sigh or a tear,
Can abide while we trust and obey.
[CHORUS]
Not a burden we bear, not a sorrow we share,
But our toil He doth richly repay;
Not a grief or a loss, not a frown or a cross,
But is blessed if we trust and obey.
[CHORUS]
But we never can prove the delights of His love
Until all on the altar we lay;
For the favor He shows, for the joy He bestows,
Are for them who will trust and obey.
[CHORUS]
Then in fellowship sweet we will sit at His feet,
Or we’ll walk by His side in the way;
What He says we will do, where He sends we will go;
Never fear, only trust and obey.
We will post the Sunday Worship Service on the Web-site on Friday for your use on the Lord’s Day.
Please remember that you are deeply loved by God, (see Romans 8:35-39) and by us, (see Philippians 1:3-10). If you have particular needs, prayer requests, ideas, or just want to talk, I can be reached either at the church (561) 276-5533, or on my cell phone (561) 704-8333. Pastor Jay can be reached at (561) 309-2623. If you would like a pastoral visit, please call and we will be happy to set up a time to get together.
May the Lord bless you during these difficult days!
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