PROVIDENCE CHURCH

      February 6, 2022

 

Welcome

Passing of the Peace: Though we are separated by distance our hearts are one in Christ. The peace of Christ be with you!  And also with you!

 

Doxology

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

 

Call to Worship:   Psalm 33:1-9

Leader:  Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous!   Praise befits the upright.

Congregation:  Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!   Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

Leader: For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness.

Congregation:  He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord.

Leader:  By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.  He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; he puts the deeps in storehouses.

Congregation:  Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!

All:  For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.

Songs of Praise:

All Creatures of Our God and King (Francis of Assisi, 1225)

All creatures of our God and King, lift up your voice and with us sing alleluia, alleluia!

Thou burning sun with golden beam, thou silver moon with softer gleam,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

 

Thou rushing wind that art so strong, ye clouds that sail in heav’n along, O praise him, alleluia!

Thou rising morn in praise rejoice, ye lights of evening, find a voice,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

 

All ye who are of tender heart, forgiving others, take your part, O sing ye, alleluia!

Ye who long pain and sorrow bear, praise God and on him cast your care,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

 

Let all things their Creator bless, and worship him in humbleness, O praise him, alleluia!

Praise, praise the Father, praise the Son, and praise the Spirit, three in one,

O praise him, O praise him, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

 

 

Leaning on the Everlasting Arms (Elisha Hoffman, 1887; tune Anthony Showalter, 1887)

What a fellowship, what a joy divine, leaning on the everlasting arms;

What a blessedness, what a peace is mine, leaning on the everlasting arms.

 

Chorus:

Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all alarms;

Leaning, leaning, leaning on the everlasting arms.

 

O how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way, leaning on the everlasting arms;

O how bright the path grows from day to day, leaning on the everlasting arms. (Chorus)

 

What have I to dread, what have I to fear, leaning on the everlasting arms?

I have blessed peace with my Lord so near, leaning on the everlasting arms. (Chorus)

 

At the Cross

(Chris Tomlin, Ed Cash, Jonas Myrin, Matthew Armstrong, Matt Redman; CCLI # 7017786)

 

There’s a place where mercy reigns and never dies;

There’s a place where streams of grace flow deep and wide,

Where all the love I’ve ever found

Comes like a flood, comes flowing down…

 

Chorus:

At the cross, at the cross, I surrender my life.

I’m in awe of you, I’m in awe of you.

Where your love ran red and my sin washed white,

I owe all to you, I owe all to you, Jesus.

 

There’s a place where sin and shame are powerless,

Where my heart has peace with God and forgiveness,

Where all the love I’ve ever found

Comes like a flood, comes flowing down…

 

Chorus:

At the cross, at the cross, I surrender my life:

I’m in awe of you, I’m in awe of you.

Where your love ran red and my sin washed white,

I owe all to you, I owe all to you…. (last time: “Jesus”)

 

Bridge:

Here—my hope is found, here—on holy ground,

Here I bow down, here I bow down.

Here—arms open wide, here—you saved my life,

Here I bow down, here I bow…(Chorus 2x)

 

Confession/Assurance    

 

Psalm 32:1-7

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,

whose sin is covered.

2 Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,

and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

 

3 For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away

through my groaning all day long.

4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;

my strength was dried up[b] as by the heat of summer. Selah

 

5 I acknowledged my sin to you,

and I did not cover my iniquity;

I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”

and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

 

6 Therefore let everyone who is godly

offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found;

surely in the rush of great waters,

they shall not reach him.

7 You are a hiding place for me;

you preserve me from trouble;

you surround me with shouts of deliverance.

 

Respond in Praise:

 

O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus (Samuel Francis; tune Thomas Williams, 1890)

O the deep, deep love of Jesus! Vast, unmeasured, boundless, free;

Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me.

Underneath me, all around me, is the current of thy love;

Leading onward, leading homeward, to thy glorious rest above.

 

O the deep, deep love of Jesus! Spread his praise from shore to shore;

How he loveth, ever loveth, changeth never, nevermore;

How he watches o’er his loved ones, died to call them all his own;

How for them he intercedeth, watcheth o’er them from the throne.

 

O the deep, deep love of Jesus! Love of ev’ry love the best:

‘tis an ocean vast of blessing, ‘tis a haven sweet of rest.

O the deep, deep love of Jesus! ‘Tis a heav’n of heav’ns to me;

And it lifts me up to glory, for it lifts me up to thee.

 

Apostles Creed

I 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 is seated at the right hand

of God the Father Almighty.

From there he will come to judge the living and 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

 

Scripture Reading:    Matthew 18:1-6

 

Who Is the Greatest?

18 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

 

5 “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,[a] it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.

 

”This is the Word of the Lord.   Thanks be to God!

Sermon:  “Who Is the Greatest?”                                                                                                   

 

Communion Hymn

 

How Deep the Father’s Love for Us (Stuart Townend, 1995; CCLI #1558110)

1.How deep the Father’s love for us, how vast beyond all measure,

That He would give His only Son to make a wretch his treasure.

How great the pain of searing loss; the Father turns His face away

As wounds which mar the Chosen one bring many sons to glory.

 

2.Behold the Man upon a cross, my sin upon His shoulders.

Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice call out among the scoffers.

It was his love that held him there, until it was accomplished;

His dying breath has brought me life; I know that it is finished.

 

3.I will not boast in anything, no gifts, no power, no wisdom.

But I will boast in Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection.

Why should I gain from His reward? I cannot give an answer.

But this I know with all my heart: His wounds have paid my ransom.

 

Communion

 

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.

Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil:

for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory.  Amen

 

Hymn of Thanksgiving

Living Hope (Brian Johnson, Phil Wickham, 2019; CCLI #7106807)

1.How great the chasm that lay between us,

How high the mountain I could not climb

In desperation, I turned to heaven

And spoke your name into the night.

Then through the darkness your lovingkindness

Saw through the shadows of my soul.

The work is finished, the end is written,

Jesus Christ, my Living Hope.

 

2.Who could imagine so great a mercy,

What heart could fathom such boundless grace?

The God of Ages stepped down from glory

To wear my sin and bear my shame.

The Cross has spoken, I am forgiven,

The King of kings calls me his own.

Beautiful Savior, I’m yours forever,

Jesus Christ, my Living Hope

 

Chorus: Hallelujah, praise the One who set me free,

Hallelujah, Death has lost its grip on me!

You have broken every chain,

There’s salvation in your name,

Jesus Christ, my Living Hope!

 

3.Then came the morning that sealed the promise,

Your buried body began to breathe.

Out of the silence, the roaring Lion

Declared the Grave has no claim on me. (Repeat verse 3)

Jesus, yours is the victory!

 

Chorus: Hallelujah, praise the One who set me free,

Hallelujah, Death has lost its grip on me!

You have broken every chain,

There’s salvation in your name,

Jesus Christ, my Living Hope! (Repeat Chorus)

Jesus Christ, my Living Hope,

O God you are my Living Hope!

 

Benediction 

 

KNOW

Welcome to Providence Church! We are glad that you are here, joining us in person or via Zoom!.

Sunday School:   Adult and Youth Sunday School is at 11:15. Paula Rhodarmer will be teaching.   Will/Christina are leading a study of The Risen Lord for couples/singles. Bill/Jerry are leading the Youth SS in a classic book by CS Lewis.

Fellowship Time: Between the end of our worship service and before SS

Children of all ages are invited to participate in the entire service of worship.  Childcare for children up to 6 years of age, in our downstairs Christian Ed wing (on the left) at the end of the hallway.

Nursery Worker Needed –     Providence is looking to hire a part time nursery worker for each Sunday from 9:45 to 12noon.  Please contact Edward Brouwer 828-550-4615, or Linda Wilson, 901-230-7178, providencechurchassistant@gmail.com, if you are interested or know of anyone that might be.  Also, please be in prayer that God will guide this process. Thank you!

 

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GROW

 

Pastor Bible Study – meets each Tuesday at noon in the fellowship hall to discuss the previous week’s sermon as well as the upcoming sermon.   Bring your Bible and a bagged lunch if you would like.

Women’s Prayer Group – 10:15am Tuesday mornings, contact Linda Roberts for more info

Men’s Prayer Group – 6:45am Thursday mornings, contact Sam Mitchell for more info.

 

 

GO

Open Door Soup Kitchen: This is an ongoing commitment of Providence Church to the least, the last, the lost and the lonely of our community.  While Open Door is no longer able to serve meals, we are still volunteering to cook the meals on the first Friday of each month.  If you can serve in this way, please let Linda Wilson know at 901-230-7178.  Thanks for your faithfulness.

 

 

Prayer Requests: Deaths:  Beadie Morgan (prayers for Morgan family) For Mercy and Grace: Glenda White, Judd and Susanne Heriot, Robbie Hargrove, Mike and Rhonda Lear, Chuck & Carole Torpy; Lisa Rhodarmer’s mother Ruth and brother Michael; Sarah Altman’s brother-in-law Dan