PROVIDENCE CHURCH
September 19, 2021

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 hosts;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
Call to Worship: Psalm 100

Leader: Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
People: Serve the Lord with gladness!
Leader: Come into his presence with singing! Know that the Lord, he is God!
People: It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Leader: Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise!
People: Give thanks to him; bless his name!
ALL: For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.

Songs of Praise:
Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven (Henry Lyte, 1834; tune John Goss, 1869)
Praise, my soul, the King of heaven; to his feet your tribute bring;
Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven—who, like me, his praise should sing?
Praise him, praise him, praise him, praise him, praise the everlasting King.

Praise him for his grace and favor to our fathers in distress;
Praise him, still the same forever, slow to chide and swift to bless.
Praise him, praise him, praise him, praise him, glorious in his faithfulness.

Father-like, he tends and spares us; well our feeble frame he knows;
In his hands he gently bears us, rescues us from all our foes;
Praise him, praise him, praise him, praise him, widely as his mercy goes.

Frail as summer’s flow’r we flourish, blows the wind and it is gone;
But while mortals rise and perish, God endures unchanging on.
Praise him, praise him, praise him, praise him, praise the High Eternal One.

Angels, help us to adore him; you behold him face to face;
Sun and moon bow down before him, dwellers all in time and space;
Praise him, praise him, praise him, praise him, praise with us the God of grace.

King of Kings (Jason Ingram, Brooke Ligertwood & Scott Ligertwood, Hillsong, 2019)

In the darkness, we were waiting without hope, without light,
till from heaven you came running; there was mercy in your eyes.
To fulfill the law and prophets to a virgin came the Word
from a throne of endless glory to a cradle in the dirt.

Chorus: Praise the Father, praise the Son, praise the Spirit, three in one.
God of glory, Majesty, praise forever to the King of Kings!

To reveal the kingdom coming and to reconcile the lost,
to redeem the whole Creation you did not despise the cross.
For even in your suffering you saw to the other side,
knowing this was our salvation, Jesus, for our sake you died. (Chorus)

And the morning that you rose all of heaven held its breath,
‘til that stone was moved for good for the Lamb had conquered Death.
And the dead rose from their tombs, and the angles stood in awe,
for the souls of all who’d come to the Father are restored.
And the church of Christ was born, and the Spirit lit the flame.
Now this Gospel truth of old shall not kneel, shall not faint.
By his blood and in his name, in his freedom I am free,
for the love of Jesus Christ who has resurrected me. (Chorus)

Jesus, Cast a Look on Me (John Berridge, ca. 1760)
Jesus, cast a look on me; give me sweet simplicity.
Make me poor and keep me low, seeking only Thee to know.

All that feeds my busy pride, cast it evermore aside.
Bid my will to thine submit, lay me humbly at thy feet.

Make me like a little child; of my strength and wisdom spoil,
seeing only in thy light, walking only in thy might.

Leaning on thy loving breast, where a weary soul can rest,
feeling well the peace of God flowing from his precious blood.

In this posture let me live, and hosannas daily give;
in this temper let me die, and hosannas ever cry…
in this temper, let me die, and hosannas every cry.

Confession/Assurance

Leader: Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.
Congregation: Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
Leader: For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.
Congregation: Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.
Leader: Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Congregation: Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
Leader: Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Congregation: Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
Leader: Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.
Congregation: Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right[b] spirit within me.
Leader: Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
ALL: Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.

Respond in Praise:

When All Your Mercies, O My God (Joseph Addison, 1712)
When all your mercies, O my God, my rising soul surveys,
transported with the view, I’m lost in wonder, love and praise.

Unnumbered comforts to my soul your tender care bestowed,
before my infant heart conceived from whom those comforts flowed.

When worn with sickness, oft have you with health renewed my face;
and when in sins and sorrows sunk, revived my soul with grace.

Ten thousand, thousand precious gifts my daily thanks employ;
nor is the least a cheerful heart that tastes those gifts with joy.

Through every period of my life your goodness I’ll pursue;
And after death, in distant worlds, the glorious theme renew.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 13:1-23

The Parable of the Sower
13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. 2 And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears,[a] let him hear.”

The Purpose of the Parables
10 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

“‘“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.”
15 For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed,
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’

16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. 17 For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

The Parable of the Sower Explained
18 “Hear then the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away.[b] 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

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

Sermon: “4 Soils”

Hymn of Dedication

Speak, O Lord (Gettys/S. Townsend)
1 Speak, O Lord, as we come to You
to receive the food of Your Holy Word
Take Your truth, plant it deep in us
Shape and fashion us in Your likeness

That the light of Christ might be seen today
In our acts of love and our deeds of faith
Speak, O Lord, and fulfill in us
All Your purposes for Your glory

2 Teach us, Lord, full obedience
Holy reverence, true humility
Test our thoughts and our attitudes
In the radiance of Your purity

Cause our faith to rise; cause our eyes to see
Your majestic love and authority
Words of pow’r that can never fail—
Let their truth prevail over unbelief

3 Speak, O Lord, and renew our minds
Help us grasp the heights of your plans for us
Truths unchanged from the dawn of time
That will echo down through eternity

And by grace we’ll stand on your promises
And by faith we’ll walk as you walk with us
Speak, O Lord till your church is built
And your church is filled with your glory

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
Crown Him with Many Crowns (Matthew Bridges, 1851; tune George Elvey, 1868)
1.Crown Him with many crowns, the Lamb upon his throne;
hark! How the heav’nly anthem drowns all music but its own.
Awake, my soul, and sing of Him who died for thee,
and hail Him as thy matchless King through all eternity.

2.Crown Him the Lord of life, who triumphed o’er the grave,
and rose victorious in the strife for those He came to save.
His glories now we sing, who died and rose on high,
who died, eternal life to bring, and lives that Death may die.

3.Crown Him the Lord of peace, whose pow’r a scepter sways
from pole to pole that wars may cease and all be prayer and praise.
His reign shall know no end, and ‘round his pierced feet
fair flowers of paradise extend, their fragrance ever sweet.

4.Crown Him the Lord of love: behold his hands and side,
those wounds yet visible above, in beauty glorified.
All hail, Redeemer, hail! For Thou hast died for me!
Thy praise and glory shall not fail throughout eternity.

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. Thom and Pastor Edward will alternate teaching a study this semester. 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, please enjoy coffee and snacks and conversation in the Fellowship Hall.
Children of all ages are invited to participate in the entire service of worship. We will have
childcare for children up to 6 years of age, in our downstairs Christian Ed wing (on the left) at the end of the hallway.

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.

Wed. Night Bible Study: Wednesday Night Bible study for men and women meets in Fellowship Hall from 6:30-8:00 pm. Currently we are studying the book of Philippians.

Would you like to grow in the joy and work of prayer? Join our women on Tuesday mornings at 10:15am or our men on Thursday mornings at 6:45am. These seasons of weekly prayer are rich in fellowship and in prayers. Want to know more about Women’s Prayer? Contact Linda Roberts. Want to know more about Men’s Prayer? Contact Sam Mitchell.
.
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: Healing: Judd and Susanne Harriot, Robbie Hargrove, Mike Lear, Chuck & Carole Torpy; Glenn & Laura Glad; Thom Morgan’s mother; Lisa Rhodarmer’s mother Ruth and brother Michael; Sarah Altman’s brother-in-law Dan