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Blacknall Worship from Home
September 13, 2020

Invocation

Lord God Almighty, “our citizenship is in heaven and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” [Philippians 3:20-21] Father, transform us now that we might be your agents of transformation and that our world might know the glory of our crucified and risen Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Song | “We Were Made”

Lord, You’ve called Your people,
Purchased by Your blood,
To gather in Your presence and become as one;
Bind our hearts together in an offering of praise;
Magnify our love for You with the songs we raise.

We were made to worship You, to glorify Your name.
We were made to honor You and with our lives proclaim
Your love to all the world, a witness to Your grace;
We were made to give You praise!

Dead in our transgressions and captive to our sin,
Until by grace You saved us, we’re raised to life again!
We are Your creation, not because of what we’ve done:
Your love alone transforms us to the image of Your Son.

Words and Music by Bill Schaefer. Written for Blacknall.

Scripture Reading | Psalm 8

Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory
in the heavens.

Through the praise of children and infants
you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.

When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,

what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
human beings that you care for them?

You have made them a little lower than the angels
and crowned them with glory and honor.

You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
you put everything under their feet:

all flocks and herds,
and the animals of the wild,

the birds in the sky,
and the fish in the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.

Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Song | “Fairest Lord Jesus”

Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature,
O Thou of God and man the Son,
Thee will I cherish, Thee will I honor,
Thou, my soul’s Glory, Joy, and Crown.

All fairest beauty, heavenly and earthly,
Wondrously, Jesus, is found in Thee;
None can be nearer, fairer or dearer,
Than Thou, my Savior, art to me.

Beautiful Savior, Lord of the nations,
Son of God and Son of Man!
Glory and honor, praise, adoration,
Now and forevermore be Thine!

Words anonymous, 1677; translated from German by Joseph Seiss, 1873.
Music by H. A. Hoffman von Fallersleben, 1842.

Call to Confession

Our citizenship is in heaven, but we are a people of divided loyalties. Jesus is the fairest, our glory, joy and crown and yet we ignore him and fail to love those he loves and we fail to follow where he leads. Let us kneel and turn our bodies, minds and hearts in confession to our God and Father of all mercy.

Prayer of Confession

Lord Jesus, we kneel to confess that we do not love you with our whole heart, mind, soul and strength. We confess to you that we do not love our neighbors as ourselves. As your Body, we have had opportunities to speak your Word, your Truth, and we have been silent. We have had opportunities to be your ears and to listen and we have jumped to speak. We have had opportunities to be your eyes, and we have closed them in denial or in slumber, asleep to what is going on around us. We have had opportunities to be your hands and feet and we have chosen comfort over compassion and sacrifice. Lord, in your mercy, forgive us and make us whole, change us, transform us into your image.

Assurance of Pardon

Beloved, it is true. In Jesus Christ we are forgiven.

Passing the Peace

May the peace of the Lord be with you.
Response: And also with you

Affirmation of Faith | Apostles Creed

We believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; And 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, dead, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. We 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.

Children’s Blessing

Ephesians 2:3

All of us have tried to live by gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts.

Children’s Worship

If you would like to receive the Children’s Worship video email, please contact Beth Solie.

Proclamation of the Word | Pastor Allan Poole

The sermon is provided above in video and audio format.

Ephesians 1:15-23
15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

Song of Response | “My Goal is God Himself”

My goal is God Himself, not joy nor peace,
Nor even blessing, but Himself, my God.
‘Tis His to lead me there, not mine, but His,
At any cost, dear Lord, by any road.

So faith bounds forward to its goal in God,
And love can trust her Lord to lead her there.
Upheld by Him, my soul is following hard
‘Til God hath full fulfilled my deepest prayer.

No matter tho the way be sometimes dark,
No matter tho the cost be oft-times great.
He knoweth how I best should reach the mark.
The path that leads to Him, it must be straight.

One thing I know, that “no” I cannot say;
One thing I do, I press towards my Lord.
My God, my glory here from day to day,
And in the glory there, my great reward.

Words by Frances Brook, 1896. Music by Mark Giacobbe, 1998.
© 1998 Redeemer Music. CCLI #43066

Presenting Our Gifts | Online Giving

You are invited to respond to God’s Word by giving to the mission God has called us to at Blacknall. Your financial giving includes support of missionaries Rollin and Wendy Grams, with United World Mission in Charlotte. Read their prayer requests here.

Prayers of Thanksgiving and Intercession | Prayer Requests

(You are invited to pause at each line and add your own intercessions.)

Heavenly Father, We give you thanks for the gift of your Son and for sealing us with your promised Holy Spirit until our redemption.

We thank You for the gift of brothers and sisters who have taught us and shown us your love, especially for...(add those who have personally taught and shown you).

We thank you for the gift of gathering together even as we long for the Day when we will all be gathered together in your presence.

We thank you for the gift of brothers and sisters from across the world and across our city. We thank you for the surprising friendships we have received because of our bond in Jesus...(mention by name those friendships)

Father, we pray for wisdom, hope, and power.

We pray for wisdom to know how to live in these days; to know how to live in a manner that reflects your character; to recognize the ways your Spirit is working in our world.

We pray for hope that we would know your promised end to our story so that we are able to persevere no matter what the challenges and circumstances we face.

We pray for the power of the working of your mighty strength in our midst. May we see that power in bodies, minds, and hearts being healed from illness, despair, and grief. We pray especially for… (you may add your intercessions).

May we see your power at work in bringing reconciliation within marriages and families, between friends and neighbors, between those who are enemies and those whom we have wounded or who may have wounded us.

Knit us together, in our one Lord, Jesus Christ, as we pray together...

Let us pray as Jesus taught us: Our Father...

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory, forever.
Amen.

Benediction

Song | “I Will Praise Him, Still”

When the morning falls on the farthest hill,
I will sing His name, I will praise Him, still.
When the dark trials come and my heart is filled
With the weight of doubt, I will praise Him, still.

For the Lord, our God, He is strong to save
From the arms of death, from the deepest grave.
And He gave us life in His perfect will;
And by His good grace I will praise Him, still.

When my days are bright and my cup is filled
With all happiness, I will praise Him, still;
And when suffering in this world, until
You set all things right, I will praise You, still!