Prelude Zechariah Nelson, tenor

How Great Thou Art Stuart Hines

Call to Worship

Doxology Old Hundredth

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. Amen.

Prayer of Confession

Righteous God, if your mercy had bounds, who could stand before you? We come before you with sins unnumbered, in our thoughts and actions, in our words and attitudes. We have not loved you with our whole heart, and we have not loved our neighbor as we ought. Merciful Father, we have no merit of our own, no works which will commend us to you. We praise you that where our sin abounded, your grace much more abounds. Our only hope is in the cross of Jesus Christ, in his death and resurrection. By your Holy Spirit grant us grace to trust him more. Amen.

The Gospel’s Assurance of Pardon: Titus 3:4–7

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Invocation

Hymn 103: Holy God, We Praise Your Name Grosser Gott

Holy God, we praise your name; Lord of all, we bow before you;
all on earth your scepter claim, all in heav’n above adore you.
Infinite your vast domain, everlasting is your reign.

Hark, the glad celestial hymn angel choirs above are raising;
cherubim and seraphim in unceasing chorus praising,
fill the heav’ns with sweet accord: “Holy, holy, holy Lord.”

Lo! the apostolic train join your sacred name to hallow;
prophets swell the glad refrain, and the white-robed martyrs follow;
and from morn to set of sun, through the church the song goes on.

Holy Father, Holy Son, Holy Spirit, Three we name you;
while in essence only One, undivided God we claim you,
and adoring bend the knee, while we sing this mystery.

Responsive Reading: Psalm 102:18–28

Let this be recorded for a generation to come, so that a people yet to be created may praise the Lord:
that he looked down from his holy height; from heaven the Lord looked at the earth,
to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set free those who were doomed to die,
that they may declare in Zion the name of the Lord, and in Jerusalem his praise,
when peoples gather together, and kingdoms, to worship the Lord.
He has broken my strength in midcourse; he has shortened my days.
“O my God,” I say, “take me not away in the midst of my days— you whose years endure throughout all generations!”
Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.
They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end.
The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you.

Gloria Patri Meineke

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;

as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen, Amen.

Nicene Creed

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, for us and our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered death and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life; who proceedeth from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spake by the prophets. And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Prayer of Intercession (concluding with 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.

Announcements

Hymn 335: Gracious Spirit, Dwell with Me Redhead

Gracious Spirit, dwell with me: I myself would gracious be;
and with words that help and heal would thy life in mine reveal;
and with actions bold and meek would for Christ my Savior speak.

Truthful Spirit, dwell with me: I myself would truthful be;
and with wisdom kind and clear let Thy life in mine appear;
and with actions brotherly speak my Lord’s sincerity.

Mighty Spirit, dwell with me: I myself would mighty be;
mighty so as to prevail, where unaided man must fail;
ever by a mighty hope, pressing on and bearing up.

Holy Spirit, dwell with me: I myself would holy be;
separate from sin, I would choose and cherish all things good,
and whatever I can be give to him who gave me thee!

Offering Prayer

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Offertory: There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood arr. Sponberg/Smith/Hall Zechariah Nelson, tenor

Scripture Reading: Nehemiah 4

1 Now when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he jeered at the Jews. 2 And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?” 3 Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!” 4 Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. 5 Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be blotted out from your sight, for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders. 6 So we built the wall. And all the wall was joined together to half its height, for the people had a mind to work. 7 But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry. 8 And they all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. 9 And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night. 10 In Judah it was said, “The strength of those who bear the burdens is failing. There is too much rubble. By ourselves we will not be able to rebuild the wall.” 11 And our enemies said, “They will not know or see till we come among them and kill them and stop the work.” 12 At that time the Jews who lived near them came from all directions and said to us ten times, “You must return to us.” 13 So in the lowest parts of the space behind the wall, in open places, I stationed the people by their clans, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. 14 And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.” 15 When our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work. 16 From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. And the leaders stood behind the whole house of Judah, 17 who were building on the wall. Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other. 18 And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built. The man who sounded the trumpet was beside me. 19 And I said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “The work is great and widely spread, and we are separated on the wall, far from one another. 20 In the place where you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.” 21 So we labored at the work, and half of them held the spears from the break of dawn until the stars came out. 22 I also said to the people at that time, “Let every man and his servant pass the night within Jerusalem, that they may be a guard for us by night and may labor by day.” 23 So neither I nor my brothers nor my servants nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us took off our clothes; each kept his weapon at his right hand.

Sermon: The Sword and Trowel Dr. Liam Goligher

Hymn 539: Jerusalem the Golden Ewing

Jerusalem the golden, with milk and honey blest,
beneath your contemplation sink heart and voice oppressed.
I know not, O I know not, what joys await us there;
what radiancy of glory, what bliss beyond compare.

They stand, those halls of Zion, all jubilant with song,
and bright with many an angel, and all the martyr throng.
The Prince is ever in them, the daylight is serene;
the pastures of the blessed are decked in glorious sheen.

There is the throne of David; and there, from care released,
the song of them that triumph, the shout of them that feast;
and they who with their Leader have conquered in the fight,
forever and forever are clad in robes of white.

O sweet and blessed country, the home of God’s elect!
O sweet and blessed country, that eager hearts expect!
Jesus, in mercy bring us to that dear land of rest;
who art, with God the Father and Spirit, ever blest.

Benediction

Postlude: Fugue in B-flat Major Felix Mendelssohn

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