Morning Worship Service

Prelude: Greensleeves Ralph Vaughan Williams/arr. Stanley Roper

Announcements

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

O God, we rejoice in the promise that our Lord Jesus Christ will return in glory. Yet, our Father, we confess that we are often not on the alert for His coming. Our sin makes us sluggish and lulls us into spiritual sleep. We are prone to laziness, especially when surrounded by so many comforts and pleasures. We admit our desire to build our own kingdoms rather than to be taken up into Christ’s kingdom. Revive us, O Lord, and by Your Holy Spirit enthrone Christ in our hearts again this Advent season. Amen.

The Gospel’s Assurance of Pardon: Luke 1:50

His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.

Invocation

Hymn 194: O Come, O Come, Emmanuel Veni Emmanuel

Text: Latin Antiphons (12th century)

O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here, until the Son of God appear.

Refrain
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, O come, thou Lord of might, who to thy tribes, on Sinai's height,
in ancient times didst give the law in cloud and majesty and awe. (Refrain)

O come, thou Rod of Jesse, free thine own from Satan's tyranny;
from depths of hell thy people save, and give them vict'ry o'er the grave. (Refrain)

O come, thou Dayspring from on high, and cheer us by thy drawing nigh;
disperse the gloomy clouds of night, and death's dark shadows put to flight. (Refrain)

O come, thou Key of David, come and open wide our heav'nly home;
make safe the way that leads on high, and close the path to misery. (Refrain)

Responsive Reading: Psalm 12

Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone; for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
Everyone utters lies to his neighbor; with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts,
those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail, our lips are with us; who is master over us?”
“Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
The words of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in a furnace on the ground, purified seven times.
You, O Lord, will keep them; you will guard us from this generation forever.
On every side the wicked prowl, as vileness is exalted among the children of man.

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.

Hymn: Immanuel Stuart Townend

(During the 11am service, children ages 4-7 may go to the Catacombs for Praisemakers music.)

Offering Prayer

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

Offertory: Comfort, Comfort John Ferguson

Chamber Choir

Scripture Reading: Revelation 12:13–17

13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea.

Sermon: A Sovereign Protector I Have Dr. Liam Goligher

Hymn 214: Angels We Have Heard on High Gloria

Traditional French Carol

Angels we have heard on high, sweetly singing o'er the plains,
and the mountains in reply echo back their joyous strains.

(Refrain)
Gloria in excelsis Deo. gloria in excelsis Deo.

Shepherds, why this jubilee? Why your joyous strains prolong?
Say what may the tidings be, which inspire your heav'nly song? (Refrain)

Come to Bethlehem and see him whose birth the angels sing;
come, adore on bended knee Christ the Lord, the newborn King. (Refrain)

Benediction

Postlude: Personent Hodie Rebecca Groom te Velde

Serving today:
Rudy Heuer, 9:00am platform
Josiah Vanderveen, 11:00am platform
Colin Howland, organist