Evening Worship Service

Prelude: Intermezzo-Pastoral from 12 Pieces Gaston Litaize

Call to Worship

Invocation

Hymn 382: God Himself Is with Us Wunderbarer König
text: Gerhard Tersteegen, (1729)

God himself is with us: let us now adore him,
and with awe appear before him.
God is in his temple – all within keep silence,
prostrate lie with deepest rev’rence.
Him alone God we own, him, our God and Savior;
praise his name forever.

God himself is with us: hear the harps resounding!
See the crowds the throne surrounding!
“Holy, holy, holy” – hear the hymn ascending,
angels, saints, their voices blending!
Bow thine ear to us here: hear, O Christ, the praises
that thy church now raises.

O thou fount of blessing, purify my spirit;
trusting only in thy merit,
like the holy angels who behold thy glory,
may I ceaselessly adore thee,
and in all, great and small, seek to do most nearly
what thou lovest dearly.

Prayer of Confession

O Lord our God, no day of our lives passes that does not prove us guilty in Your sight. Even our best efforts are as filthy rags before You. We ask You to forgive our sin because He who knew no sin was made to be sin for us; that in Christ we might be fully pardoned and restored. Grant that, by resting in His righteousness alone, we may hereafter walk in newness of life, and run with endurance the race that is set before us, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Gospel’s Assurance of Pardon: 1 Peter 2:24–25

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

Doxology Tallis’ Canon

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. Amen.

Prayer of Illumination

Scripture Reading: Romans 5:1–11

1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. 6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Hymn 529: Love Divine, All Loves Excelling Beecher Text: Charles Wesley (1747)

Love divine, all loves excelling, Joy of heav’n, to earth come down:
fix in us thy humble dwelling, all thy faithful mercies crown:
Jesus, thou art all compassion, pure, unbounded love thou art;
visit us with thy salvation, enter ev’ry trembling heart.

Breathe, O breathe thy loving Spirit into ev’ry troubled breast;
let us all in thee inherit, let us find the promised rest:
take away the love of sinning; Alpha and Omega be;
End of faith, as its Beginning, set our hearts at liberty.

Come, Almighty to deliver, let us all thy life receive;
suddenly return, and never, nevermore thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing, serve thee as thy hosts above,
pray, and praise thee, without ceasing, glory in thy perfect love.

Finish, then, thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be:
let us see thy great salvation perfectly restored in thee;
changed from glory into glory, till in heav’n we take our place,
till we cast our crowns before thee, lost in wonder, love, and praise.

Confession of Faith: Westminster Shorter Catechism, question 4

Question: What is God?
Answer: God is a spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

Offering Prayer

(For online giving go to tenth.org/give or mail checks to: 1701 Delancey Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103)

Offertory: Write Your Blessed Name K. Lee Scott
Chamber Choir

Write your blessed name, O Lord, upon my heart, there to remain so indelibly engraved that no prosperity, that no adversity shall ever move me from your love. Be to me a strong tower of defense, a comforter in tribulation, a deliverer in distress, and a faithful Guide to the courts of heaven through the many temptations and dangers of this life. O Jesu, my only Savior!

Sermon: Good News of Great Joy Dr. Liam Goligher

Hymn 164: O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing Azmon

Text: Charles Wesley (1739)

O for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer’s praise,
the glories of my God and King, the triumphs of his grace.

My gracious Master and my God, assist me to proclaim,
to spread through all the earth abroad the honors of thy name.

Jesus, the name that charms our fears, that bids our sorrows cease;
‘tis music in the sinner’s ears, ‘tis life and health and peace.

He breaks the pow’r of reigning sin, he sets the pris’ner free;
his blood can make the foulest clean, his blood availed for me.

He speaks and, list’ning to his voice, new life the dead receive;
the mournful, broken hearts rejoice; the humble poor believe.

Hear him, ye deaf; his praise, ye dumb, your loosen’d tongues employ;
ye blind, behold your Savior come; and leap, ye lame, for joy.

Benediction

Postlude

Serving this evening:
Rev. John, platform
Aaron Patterson, organist