Call to Worship
Hear God call you to worship through His Word
“Let the whole earth shout triumphantly to the Lord! Serve the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we are his—his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name. For the Lord is good, and his faithful love endures forever; his faithfulness, through all generations.” (Psalm 100)
Collect for Purity
Prepare your heart for worship
Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy Name; through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Adoration
Give praise to God
Gracious and merciful God, we rejoice in you for you are our Saviour. You have shown mercy to us by not treating us as our sins deserve, by not punishing us for them because Jesus has paid the penalty for every single one of them. You have shown grace to us, giving us what we don’t deserve. All the blessings of salvation: forgiveness, adoption, reconciliation, justification, sanctification, the gift of your Spirit living in us, the hope of heaven and so much more. We thank you that you delight to show this grace and mercy to us, that nothing will separate us from your love for us because it is as high as the heavens are above the earth and as far as the east is from the west.
Amen.
Reading of the Law
Hear the Law of God
“Then God spoke all these words: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery. Do not murder.” (Exodus 20:1-2, 13)
Confession of Sins
Confess your sins to God1
O Lord of heaven and earth, remember me, cold of heart and impure, in your Kingdom. Deliver me from every ignorance and heedlessness, from pettiness of soul and stony hardness of heart. O Lord, save me from temptation; receive me in repentance; grant me pure thoughts; that I may love You with all my heart and soul and that I may obey your will in all things to the glory of your name.
Amen.
Assurance of Pardon
Receive these words of comfort
“Now to the one who works, pay is not credited as a gift, but as something owed. But to the one who does not work, but believes on him who declares the ungodly to be righteous, his faith is credited for righteousness.” (Romans 4:4-5)
The Creed
Confess what you believe about the Christian faith
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Doxology
Give glory to God
Glory to God that reigns above, Th’ eternal Three in One, who by the wonders of His love has made His nature known.
Amen.
Prayer of Intercession
Seek God's grace as you make your requests to God
Personal
God of goodness, we want your goodness to be seen in our lives, so we pray that your Holy Spirit would fill us with the fruit of goodness and enable us to be good and to do good. We pray that we would do whatever good we can, wherever we are and with whoever we are, and help us to do this not because we know we should, but because we want to. We confess that we feel the temptation to do good in order to look good and be seen to be by others. May that not be our motivation in what we do today. Lord, we want our lives to adorn the gospel and would being good and doing good be one way in which we do.
Amen.
Church
Father, we look upon our nation and we see the need is great. Thousands upon thousands of people in our villages, towns, and cities are lost in their sins and on the wide road that leads to destruction in hell. Many have heard the good news of our Lord Jesus and rejected it. Others have never heard. We pray that as a local church we would make inroads to reach the unchurched and unbelieving in our community with the gospel. Bless our efforts, may they not be in vain. And help us as a church to look beyond our community, and to support the work of making disciples elsewhere. Give to us the opportunity to be involved in training up the next generation of pastors, evangelists, and others gospel workers, and to partner with and support other local churches, especially those in hard places with less resources.
Amen.
Elders
Lord, we want our pastors and elders to grow to be more like Jesus Christ, so we pray that the Scriptures would be their standard for living, and that they would constantly and obviously battle against sin and seek to please God.
Amen.
Church Members
We pray for [member/s] that they would become more like Jesus everyday as they grow in their love of God and hatred of sin. Increase their humility, wisdom, compassion, and courage. Help them to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s conviction and leading. Give them opportunities to serve your people and open doors to share the gospel. O God, save your people, bless your possession, shepherd them, and carry them forever.
Amen.
Lord's Prayer
Pray the words that Jesus taught us to pray
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and for ever.
Amen.
Catechism
Receive this instruction from the church
What must you know to live and die in the joy of this comfort?
Three things: first, how great my sin and misery are; second, how I am set free from all my sins and misery; third, how I am to thank God for such deliverance.
Prayer of Illumination
Ask God to give you understanding as you read His Word
You have commanded that your precepts be diligently kept. We are kept pure by keeping your word. Help us to treasure it in our hearts that we may not sin against you. Lord, may you be blessed as you teach us and give us understanding as we read your Word.
Amen.
Scripture Reading
Read today's passage from The Big Read Bible reading plan and pray in response
Read Ephesians 5:15-21
Benediction
Receive this blessing from the Lord for the day ahead2
Now may the Saviour who is tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin, make you steady in trials, faithful in temptations, content with providence, and hopeful in troubles.
Amen.
Daily Liturgy
Taken from Grace Be With You by Dale Ralph Davis