Prelude

Shortly after 8am yesterday morning, Saturday, September 19, long-time and beloved member of our church family Gene Westra died, after a long struggle with several health conditions. Gene was surrounded by his loving family, who committed their husband, father, and grandfather to the Lord, to whom he belongs. As is our custom when we are in person, please begin this service with a moment of silence, using the prayer below to commit Gene to the Lord’s care.

Loving God, your beloved Son took children into his arms and blessed them.
Give us grace, we pray, that we may entrust Gene to your never-failing care and love,
and bring us all to your heavenly kingdom;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Opening Scripture

Bless the Lord, O my soul.
    O Lord my God, you are very great.

You stretch out the heavens like a tent,
    you set the beams of your chambers on the waters,
you make the clouds your chariot,
    you ride on the wings of the wind,
you make the winds your messengers,
    fire and flame your ministers.

You set the earth on its foundations,
    so that it shall never be shaken.
May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
    may the Lord rejoice in his works.
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to him,
    for I rejoice in the Lord.

Bless the Lord, O my soul.
Praise the Lord!
—Psalm 104:1, 3-5, 31, 33-35

Song

Come away from rush and hurry to the stillness of God’s peace;
from our vain ambition’s worry, come to Christ to find release.
Come away from noise and clamor, life’s demands and frenzied pace;
come to join the people gathered here to seek and find God’s grace. 

In the pastures of God’s goodness we lie down to rest our soul.
From the waters of God’s mercy we drink deeply, are made whole.
At the table of God’s presence all the saints are richly fed.
With the oil of God’s anointing into service we are led. 

Come, then, children, with your burdens— life’s confusions, fears, and pain.
Leave them at the cross of Jesus, take instead his kingdom’s reign.
Bring your thirsts, for he will quench them— he alone will satisfy.
All our longings find attainment when to self we gladly die. 

Text: Marva J. Dawn © 1999 Marva J. Dawn, from A "Royal" Waste of Time: The Splendor of Worshiping God and Being Church for the World, W. B. Eerdmans Tune: (NETTLETON 8.7.8.7 D): J. Wyeth’s Repository of Sacred Music, Part II, 1813, P.D. Used by permission, CCLI # 220360

Greeting

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Our help is in the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all.
Amen.

Song

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation!
O my soul, praise him, for he is your health and salvation!
Come, all who hear; brothers and sisters, draw near,
join me in glad adoration! 

Praise to the Lord, who o’er all things is wondrously reigning,
sheltering you under his wings, oh, so gently sustaining.
Have you not seen all that is needful has been
sent by his gracious ordaining?

Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee.
Surely his goodness and mercy will daily attend thee.
Ponder anew what the Almighty can do,
if with his love he befriend thee.

Praise to the Lord! Oh, let all that is in me adore him!
All that has life and breath, come now with praises before him!
Let the amen sound from his people again.
Gladly forever adore him! 

Words: Joachim Neander, 1680; tr. Catherine Winkworth, 1863, alt., P.D. Tune: (LOBE DEN HERREN 14.14.4.7.8) Ernewerten Gesangbuch, Stralsund, 1665, P.D.

Confession and Assurance

Call to Confession: Romans 7:15, 18-19

Here is what the apostle Paul writes:

I do not understand my own actions.
For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh.
I can will what is right, but I cannot do it.
For I do not do the good I want,
but the evil I do not want is what I do.

Let us confess our sin before Almighty God.

Prayer of Confession

Merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you
with our whole heart and mind and strength.
We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
In your mercy forgive what we have been,
help us amend what we are,
and direct what we shall be,
so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your holy name.
Through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Assurance of Pardon: Romans 8:1, 34, 39

Who is in a position to condemn us?
Only Christ, but there is no condemnation 
for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Christ died for us, Christ rose for us,
Christ reigns in power for us, Christ prays for us.
Nothing can separate us from the love of God
in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Peace

The peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.
And also with you.

Call to Holiness Romans 8:9, 12-14

You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit,
if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you.
So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors,
not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.
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.
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.

Song

Affirmation of 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 and born of the virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended to heaven
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
From there 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.

Prayer of Illumination

Gracious God,
we do not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from your mouth.
You are the God who speaks, and has always spoken.
And when you speak, creation bursts forth.
Make us hungry for your Word,
that it may nourish us,
and that new creation may burst forth afresh in us today.
Through Jesus Christ, the bread of heaven, and Word made flesh.
Amen.

Scripture Reading

Genesis 1:1-5; 2:1-3

1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

2 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

Hebrews 1:1-3a

1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. 

This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

Sermon

Divine Word, Divine Rest

Prayers of the People

O God our Creator,
by whose mercy and might the world has turned over a new week,
and returns again now to Sabbath, the first day of the week;

We bring you our prayers for the world. We pray for the created world:
for those places where hurricanes and wildfires threaten to destroy,
and for those who will rebuild where things have been destroyed;
for those who fight hunger, poverty, and disease;
for those who have the power to bring change for the better and to renew hope.
In the life of our world, your Sabbath come, your will be done.

We pray for our country:
for those who frame our laws and shape our common life;
for those who keep the peace and administer justice;
for those who teach, those who heal, and all who serve the community.
In the life of our land, your Sabbath come, your will be done.

We pray for people in need:
those for whom life is a bitter struggle;
those whose lives are clouded by death and loss, by pain or disability,
by discouragement or fear, by shame or rejection.
In the lives of those in need, your Sabbath come, your will be done.

We pray for those in the circle of friendship and love around us:
for Helen in the days, weeks, and months ahead, and for all who dearly loved Gene.
Be with us in our grief, and be with us in our gladness, in the firm assurance that Gene now delights in your unmediated presence.
We pray for Linda as she undergoes surgery on Monday, and Barb on Tuesday;
for Margo, Nan, and Judy in their ongoing cancer treatments and recovery;
for Kort & Elizabeth, and Benjamin and Madelyn, in their ongoing grief at the unexpected death of Kort’s dad Steve.
In the lives of those we love, your Sabbath come, your will be done.

We pray for the church:
in its stand with the poor,
in its love for the outcast and the ashamed,
in its service to the sick and neglected,
in its proclamation of the gospel,
in this land, in this place.
In the life of your church, your Sabbath come, your will be done.

Almighty and everlasting God, on this Sabbath day, the dawn of a new week,
we give into your hands all of our unfinished tasks of the previous one,
all our unsolved problems, all our unfulfilled hopes.
We know that only those things which you bless will prosper.
To your great love and protection we commit each other and all for whom we have prayed.
You alone are our sure defender, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The prayer above was adapted from the Book of Common Order, Church of Scotland, St. Andrews Press and Celebrating Common Prayer. Reprinted by permission.

Offering

In addition to our various funds (General, Building, Mission, Benevolence, Christian Education), online giving is also now available for today’s special offerings (Calvin Seminary & Resthaven ) through the Give button below.

Song

We invite you to sing the Doxology with just the voices in your home. “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord” (Psalm 100:1).

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
praise him, all creatures here below;
praise him above, ye heavenly host;
praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. 

Words: Thomas Ken, 1709, P.D.; Music: Louis Bourgeois, 1551, P.D.

God’s Parting Words

The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you
and be gracious unto you;
the Lord lift up the light of his countenance upon you
and give you peace. Amen.

Go in peace, to love and serve the Lord.