January 12, 2025

*Call to Worship | 1 Chronicles 16:8-10 | Rev. Blake Arnoult

^{God invites and calls us into his presence to worship him.}

8 Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! 9 Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! 10 Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!

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*Song of Adoration | Arise O God

^{We begin by responding with praise to God for who he is and for what he does.} 

Arise, O God, and shine in all Thy saving might,

And prosper each design to spread Thy glorious light;

Let healing streams of mercy flow

That all the earth Thy truth may know

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Bring distant nations near to sing Thy glorious praise;

Let every people hear and learn Thy holy ways

Reign, mighty God, assert Thy cause,

And govern by Thy righteous laws

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Put forth Thy glorious power, that everyone may see

And earth present her store in converts born to Thee

God, our own God, His church will bless,

And fill the world with righteousness

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To God, the only Wise, the one immortal King,

Let hallelujahs rise from every living thing;

Let all that breathe, on every coast,

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost

_{Music and Lyrics: William Hurn, Chris Miner}

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*Confession of Faith | Westminster Shorter Catechism, Q.42

^{With the church in history we confess a basic statement of what Christians believe.}

Leader: What is the sum of the ten commandments?

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All: The sum of the ten commandments is, To love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our strength, and with all our mind; and our neighbor as ourselves.

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*Song of Confession | Come Ye Sinners

^{Psalms, hymns, spiritual songs are simply prayers that are sung. We respond in repentance and praise for God’s redemptive work in Christ.}

Come, ye sinners, poor and wretched,

Weak and wounded, sick and sore;

Jesus, ready, stands to save you,

Full of pity, joined with power.

He is able, He is able;

He is willing; doubt no more.

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Come ye needy, come, and welcome,

God’s free bounty glorify;

True belief and true repentance,

Every grace that brings you nigh.

Without money, without money

Come to Jesus Christ and buy.

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Come, ye weary, heavy laden,

Bruised and broken by the fall;

If you tarry ’til you’re better,

You will never come at all.

Not the righteous, not the righteous;

Sinners Jesus came to call.

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Let not conscience make you linger,

Nor of fitness fondly dream;

All the fitness He requires

Is to feel your need of Him.

This He gives you, this He gives you,

’Tis the Spirit’s rising beam.

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Lo! The Incarnate God, ascended;

Pleads the merit of His blood.

Venture on Him; venture wholly,

Let no other trust intrude.

None but Jesus, none but Jesus

Can do helpless sinners good.

_{Music and Lyrics: Joseph Hart, Brooks Ritter}

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Confession of Sin 

^{We fight the temptation to hide our sin and instead acknowledge it openly to God, but we do so in light of the grace offered in Jesus.}

Almighty and most merciful Father, we are thankful that your mercy is higher than the heavens, wider than our wanderings, deeper than all our sin. Forgive our careless attitudes toward your purposes, our refusal to relieve the suffering of others, our envy of those who have more than we have, our obsession with creating a life of constant pleasure, our indifference to the treasures of heaven, our neglect of your wise and gracious law. Help us to change our way of life so that we may desire what is good, love what you love, and do what you command, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Assurance of Pardon | Isaiah 25:8 | Rev. Blake Arnoult

^{The good news of the gospel is that we are forgiven in Jesus Christ. This assurance is based on God’s words of promise and it is therefore certain.}

8 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.

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*Song of Response | Thy Mercy My God

^{We respond in repentance and praise for God’s redemptive work in Christ.}

Thy mercy, my God, is the theme of my song,

The joy of my heart and the boast of my tongue;

Thy free grace alone, from the first to the last,

Hath won my affections, and bound my soul fast.

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Without Thy sweet mercy I could not live here;

Sin would reduce me to utter despair;

But, through Thy free goodness, my spirits revive,

And He that first made me still keeps me alive.

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Thy mercy is more than a match for my heart,

Which wonders to feel its own hardness depart;

Dissolved by Thy goodness, I fall to the ground,

And weep to the praise of the mercy I’ve found.

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Great Father of mercies, Thy goodness I own,

And the covenant love of Thy crucified Son;

All praise to the Spirit, Whose whisper divine

Seals mercy, and pardon, and righteousness mine.

_{Music and Lyrics: John Stocker}

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Prayer of Thanksgiving 

^{We offer our gratitude to God in prayer in response to his gifts and blessings to his people and ask that he make us faithful managers of these gifts.}

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Song of Thanks | My Faith Has Found a Resting Place

^{As we offer our prayers so we also offer up our thanks in song.}

My faith has found a resting place,

Not in device or creed;

I trust the ever living One,

His wounds for me shall plead.

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I need no other argument,

I need no other plea,

It is enough that Jesus died,

And that He died for me.

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Enough for me that Jesus saves,

This ends my fear and doubt;

A sinful soul I come to Him,

He’ll never cast me out.

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Chorus

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My heart is leaning on the Word,

The living Word of God,

Salvation by my Savior’s Name,

Salvation through His blood.

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Chorus

_{Music and Lyrics: Lidie Hornsby Edmunds}

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Prayer for Christ’s Church

^{We lift up our requests to God knowing that he hears us when we pray.}

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*Reading of Scripture | Luke 10:25-37 | Dr. Richard Lints

^{God reveals himself and his work and speaks to us his people through his Word.}

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And 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 answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”

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29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, 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, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

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Pastor: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

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The Preaching of the Word | Dr. Richard Lints

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“Parable of the Good Samaritan”

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Pastoral Prayer

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Sacrament of Communion

Sacraments are visible signs of the invisible grace of God - what Christ does by his Holy Spirit within us. Communion (also called the Lord’s Supper or the Eucharist), as the distribution of the elements of bread and wine, symbolizes a meal. Communion is a sign of fellowship. That sign signifies more than just the future heavenly fellowship that is to come. The outward sign signifies the inner reality that sinners already experience fellowship with God in the Spirit because of Jesus. Communion is not a meal for good people. It functions as a renewing seal to desperate sinners of that fellowship we have with our holy and gracious God.

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You will be invited to come forward. If you are not a Christian we encourage you to spend this time in reflection on what you’ve seen and heard in the worship. Children who have not received their first communion are welcome and encouraged to come forward with their families to witness their partaking. We invite children who are ready to make a public profession of faith in Christ to arrange a meeting with the elders, and thus become “communicants” at the Lord’s Table. 

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Pastor: The Lord be with you.

People: And also with you.

Pastor: Lift up your hearts!

People: We lift them up to the Lord.

Pastor: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

People: It is right to give him thanks and praise.

Prayer of Thanksgiving and Words of Institution

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Pastor: Let us proclaim the mystery of the faith: 

People: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. Hallelujah! 

Pastor: Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed for us. Hallelujah! 

People: Therefore, let us keep the feast. 

Pastor: The gifts of God for the people of God.

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Please let an usher know if it is difficult for you to come forward. We would be happy to serve you at your seat. All communion bread is gluten-free. All communion wine is made from  grape juice.

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A communion prayer for those searching for the truth:

Lord Jesus, you claim to be the way, the truth and the life. If what you claim is true, please guide me, teach me, and open to me the reality of who you are. Give me the ability to follow you no matter what it might cost me. Give me an understanding for you that is coherent, convincing, and leads to the life that you promise. Amen.

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Communion Song | Grace Alone

^{We celebrate our communion in faith and song.}

I was an orphan lost at the fall

Running away when I'd hear you call

But Father you worked your will

I had no righteousness of my own

I had no right to draw near your throne

But Father you loved me still

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And in love before you laid the world's foundation

You predestined to adopt me as your own

You have raised me up so high above my station

I'm a child of God by grace and grace alone

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You left your home to seek out the lost

You knew the great and terrible cost

But Jesus your face was set

I worked my fingers down to the bone

But nothing I did could ever atone

But Jesus you paid my debt

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By Your blood I have redemption and salvation

Lord you died that I might reap what you have sown

And you rose that I might be a new creation

I am born again by grace and grace alone

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I was in darkness all of my life

I never knew the day from the night

But Spirit you made me see

I swore I knew the way on my own

Head full of rocks a heart made of stone

But Spirit you moved in me

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And at your touch my sleeping spirit was awakened

On my darkened heart the light of Christ has shone

Called into a kingdom that cannot be shaken

Heaven's citizen by grace and grace alone

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So I'll stand in faith by grace and grace alone

I will run the race by grace and grace alone

I will slay my sin by grace and grace alone

I will reach the end by grace and grace alone

_{Music and Lyrics: Dustin Kensrue}

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Departing Song | Jesus I My Cross Have Taken

^{We begin to end in faith and song.}

Jesus, I my cross have taken,

All to leave and follow Thee.

Destitute, despised, forsaken,

Thou from hence my all shall be.

Perish every fond ambition,

All I’ve sought or hoped or known.

Yet how rich is my condition!

God and heaven are still my own.

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Let the world despise and leave me,

They have left my Savior, too.

Human hearts and looks deceive me;

Thou art not, like them, untrue.

O while Thou dost smile upon me,

God of wisdom, love, and might,

Foes may hate and friends disown me,

Show Thy face and all is bright.

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Man may trouble and distress me,

’Twill but drive me to Thy breast.

Life with trials hard may press me;

Heaven will bring me sweeter rest.

Oh, ’tis not in grief to harm me

While Thy love is left to me;

Oh, ’twere not in joy to charm me,

Were that joy unmixed with Thee.

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Go, then, earthly fame and treasure,

Come disaster, scorn and pain

In Thy service, pain is pleasure,

With Thy favor, loss is gain

I have called Thee Abba Father,

I have stayed my heart on Thee

Storms may howl, and clouds may gather;

All must work for good to me.

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Soul, then know thy full salvation

Rise o’er sin and fear and care

Joy to find in every station,

Something still to do or bear.

Think what Spirit dwells within thee,

Think what Father’s smiles are thine,

Think that Jesus died to win thee,

Child of heaven, canst thou repine.

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Haste thee on from grace to glory,

Armed by faith, and winged by prayer.

Heaven’s eternal days before thee,

God’s own hand shall guide us there.

Soon shall close thy earthly mission,

Soon shall pass thy pilgrim days,

Hope shall change to glad fruition,

Faith to sight, and prayer to praise.

_{Music and Lyrics: Henry Francis Lyte, Billy Foote}

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*Benediction | Isaiah 25:9 | Rev. Blake Arnoult

^{God sends us out with his blessing. A benediction is not a prayer. We don’t bow our heads. We lift them up and even lift up our hands to receive his blessing as we are sent out as participants in his mission to the city of man.}

9 It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

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Kids’ Sunday School

Sunday, February 2, 9am

Our spring Sunday school series for kids (K-4th) begins on Sunday, February 2 at 9am!

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Youth Bible Study

Sunday, February 2, 9am

Our spring Bible Study series for youth (5th-12th) begins on Sunday, February 2 at 9am!

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Bible Studies

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Women’s Morning Study: Wednesday, January 22

Our women’s weekly Bible study will begin their spring series on Wednesday, January 22. Join us at the home of Marion Wade at 10am!

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Women’s Evening Study: Thursday, February 6

Our women’s evening study on Prayer will meet on Thursday, February 6! Join us at the home of Susan Arnoult at 7pm.

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Men’s Morning Study: Friday, February 7

Our men’s study on Prayer will meet on Friday, February 7 at 7am at Bean and Bottle! 9655 Katy Freeway Suite 100.

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Wine Tasting Event

Friday, January 31, 7pm

Adults are invited to join us on January 31 at the home of Jeff and Susan Arnoult for our annual wine tasting event, led by Ethan McEwin! 

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Important Communication Update!!

If you would like to receive volunteer and event reminders and updates through text, please text YES to 87447. This allows us to quickly get information and event addresses to you!

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