Sunday Evening Worship Service, April 5, 2020
Brothers and Sisters of Seacrest Church,
For the next couple of weeks, Pastor Jay and I are going to preach and teach a short series titled, “Why did Jesus Come?” It will be the subject of our Palm Sunday and Easter Services as well as the daily devotionals of this week. On Good Friday, we are asking you to join us at home in a day of prayer and fasting. I will be posting the information on how to participate on our web-site and through our church e-mail lists.
We hope to also have the morning and evening worship services available to you on Zoom at 10:30 AM and 5:00 PM when we would normally meet. This will provide both audio and video of the service. We will be sending out information to you today on how to connect.
Worship
We are gathered in our homes, and together in the Spirit on this Palm Sunday to worship our God. On the web-site, www.seacrestchurch.com, we have posted a worship service format that you can follow both for the morning and the evening worship services. 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.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all that is within me,
bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. (Psalm 103:1-5 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.
Come Christians, Join to Sing
By Christian H. Bateman
Come, Christians, join to sing, Alleluia! Amen!
Loud praise to Christ our King: Alleluia, Amen!
Let all with heart and voice, before his throne rejoice;
praise is his gracious choice: Alleluia, Amen!
Come, lift your hearts on high; Alleluia, Amen!
Let praises fill the sky: Alleluia, Amen!
Christ is our guide and friend; to us he’ll condescend;
His love shall never end: Alleluia, Amen!
Praise yet our Christ again: Alleluia, Amen!
Life shall not end the strain; Alleluia, Amen!
On heaven’s blissful shore his goodness we’ll adore,
Singing forevermore, Alleluia, Amen!
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).
Galatians 4:4-7
4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
Click HERE to listen to the sermon.
The Text: Galatians 4:4-7
The Title: Why Did Jesus Come? To Redeem and Adopt!
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.
Jesus Paid It All
By Elvina M. Hall
I hear the Savior say,
“Your strength indeed is small,
Child of weakness, watch and pray,
Find in Me your all in all.”
[CHORUS]
Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.
Lord, now indeed I find
Your power, and yours alone,
Can change the leper’s spots
And melt the heart of stone.
[CHORUS]
For nothing good have I
Whereby your grace to claim;
I’ll wash my garments white
In the blood of Calv’ry’s Lamb.
[CHORUS]
And when, before the throne,
I stand in Him complete,
“Jesus died my soul to save,”
my lips shall still repeat.
[CHORUS]
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, We can be reached either at the church (561) 276-5533, or cell phone (561) 704-8333. 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!
Leave a Reply