April 2, 2023

*Call to Worship | Philippians 1:6 | Blake Arnoult

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

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6 I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

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*Song of Adoration | Praise to the Lord, the Almighty

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

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Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation!

O my soul, praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation!

All ye who hear, now to His temple draw near;

Praise Him in glad adoration.

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Praise to the Lord, who o’er all things so wondrously reigneth,

Shelters thee under His wings, yea, so gently sustaineth!

Hast thou not seen how thy desires e’er have been

Granted in what He ordaineth?

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Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee;

Surely His goodness and mercy here daily attend thee;

Ponder anew what the Almighty can do,

If with His love He befriend thee.

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Praise to the Lord, who, when darkness of sin is abounding,

Who, when the godless do triumph, all virtue confounding,

Sheddeth His light, chaseth the horrors of night,

Saints with His mercy surrounding.

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Praise to the Lord, oh, let all that is in me adore Him!

All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him;

Let the Amen sound from His people again,

Gladly for aye we adore Him.

Music and Lyrics: Catherine Winkworth, Joachim Neander

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*Confession of Faith | 2 Corinthians 5:14-17

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

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14 The love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

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16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

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*Song of Confession | He Will Hold Me Fast

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

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When I fear my faith will fail, Christ will hold me fast.

When the tempter would prevail, He will hold me fast.

I could never keep my hold through life’s fearful path;

For my love is often cold, He must hold me fast.

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He will hold me fast; He will hold me fast!

For my Savior loves me so, He will hold me fast!

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Those He saves are His delight; Christ will hold me fast.

Precious in His holy sight; He will hold me fast.

He’ll not let my soul be lost, His promises shall last;

Bought by Him at such a cost, He will hold me fast.

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Chorus

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For my life He bled and died; Christ will hold me fast.

Justice has been satisfied; He will hold me fast.

Raised with Him to endless life, He will hold me fast;

‘Till our faith is turned to sight, when He comes at last!

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/ Chorus /

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He began a work in us…

He’ll complete His work in us…

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He will hold us fast; He will hold us fast!

For our Savior loves us so, He will hold us fast!

Music and Lyrics: Ada Habershon; Matt Merker

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A Lament and Confession of Sin | Psalm 6:2-7 and Romans 3:10-18 | Blake Arnoult

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.

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Psa 6:2 Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing;

heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled.

3 My soul also is greatly troubled.

But you, O LORD—how long?

4   Turn, O LORD, deliver my life;

save me for the sake of your steadfast love.

5 For in death there is no remembrance of you;

in Sheol who will give you praise?

6 I am weary with my moaning;

every night I flood my bed with tears;

I drench my couch with my weeping.

7 My eye wastes away because of grief;

it grows weak because of all my foes.

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Rom 3:10 “None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” 13 “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” 14 “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” 15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16 in their paths are ruin and misery, 17 and the way of peace they have not known.” 18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

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Assurance of Pardon | Romans 8:15-17 | 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.

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15 You did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

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*Song of Response | Blessed Assurance

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

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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.

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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.

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Perfect submission, perfect delight,

Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;

Angels descending bring from above,

Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

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Chorus

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Perfect submission, all is at rest;

I in my Savior am happy and blessed,

Watching and waiting, looking above,

Filled with his goodness, lost in his love.

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/ Chorus /

Music and Lyrics: George Job Elvey, Godfrey Thring, Matthew Bridges

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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 | Doxology

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

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/ Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;

Praise Him, all creatures here below;

Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host;

Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. /

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// Amen //

Music and Lyrics: Thomas Ken, Thomas Tallis

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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 | Romans 8:1-17 | Rev. Blake Arnoult

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

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1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

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9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

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12 So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

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Pastor: The Word of the Lord

People: Thanks be to God

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The Preaching of the Word | Rev. Blake Arnoult

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“Gospel Freedom from Condemnation for Life”

Romans: The Power of God for Salvation

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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.

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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 | Hail to the Lord’s Anointed

We celebrate our communion in faith and song.

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Hail to the Lord's anointed

Great David's greater Son

Hail in the time appointed

His reign on earth begun

He comes to break oppression

To set the captive free

To take away transgression

And rule in equity

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He comes with succour speedy

To those who suffer wrong

To help the poor and needy

And bid the weak be strong

To give them songs for sighing

Their darkness turn to light

Whose souls condemned and dying

Were precious in His sight

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He shall come down like showers

Upon the fruitful earth

And love joy hope like flowers

Spring in His path to birth

Before Him on the mountains

Shall peace the herald go

And righteousness in fountains

From hill to valley flow

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Kings shall fall down before Him

And gold and incense bring

All nations shall adore Him

His praise all people sing

To Him shall prayer unceasing

And daily vows ascend

His kingdom still increasing

A kingdom without end

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O'er ev'ry foe victorious

He on His throne shall rest

From age to age more glorious

All-blessing and all-blest

The tide of time shall never

His covenant remove

His name shall stand for ever

That name to us is love

Music and Lyrics: Brian Moss, Samuel John Stone

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Departing Song | Worthy is the Lamb

We begin to end in faith and song.

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Thank you for the cross Lord

Thank you for the price You paid

Bearing all my sin and shame

In love You came

And gave amazing grace

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Thank you for this love Lord

Thank you for the nail pierced hands

Washed me in Your cleansing flow

Now all I know

Your forgiveness and embrace

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Worthy is the Lamb

Seated on the throne

Crown You now with many crowns

You reign victorious

High and lifted up

Jesus Son of God

The Treasure of Heaven crucified

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Worthy is the Lamb

Worthy is the Lamb

Worthy is the Lamb

Worthy is the Lamb

Music and Lyrics: Hillsong

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*Benediction | 1 Thessalonians 5:23 | 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.

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23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

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Nursery Unavailable

April 9

Cornerstone’s nursery will be unavailable on Easter Sunday

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Congregational Meeting- Today!

Sunday, April 2, directly after the service

Join us directly after today’s service for a congregational meeting. We encourage all members to attend!

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Palm Sunday Gathering - Today!

Sunday, April 2, 4-6pm

Join us at the Erwin home on Palm Sunday for our annual gathering! This is a BYOB potluck event! Please note, our annual Easter egg hunt for the kids will begin promptly at 4pm. Don’t forget your Easter baskets!

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Good Friday Service

Friday, April 7, 5:30-6:30pm

We will be gathering at A.D. Players for a service of scripture and music the evening of April 7. We hope to see you there!

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Sunday School

Sunday school will resume on April 16!

We are taking a brief break from Sunday school though Easter. Join us again in April every Sunday morning at 9:15am!

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Bible Studies

Women’s Morning Bible Study: 

Wednesday mornings, 9:30am at the Wade home

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Women’s Evening Bible Study: 

Resuming on Thursday evening, April 6, 7pm at the McEwin home

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Men’s Bible Study: 

Friday mornings, 7am at Buffalo Grille on Voss and Woodway

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