This is part of the worship series,
"Be Not Afraid”
Series Introduction and Prelude
Advent 1 | Advent 2 | Advent 3 | Advent 4 |
Longest Night | Christmas Eve | Epiphany 1 | Epiphany 2
Epiphany 2
Fear of Strangers 2
God Calls Us to Worship and Praise
Call to Worship
I will extol the Lord at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips.
I will glory in the Lord;
let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
Glorify the Lord with me;
let us exalt his name together.
—Psalm 34:1–3
Songs
“Praise the LORD! Sing Hallelujah” (st. 1, 3–4) Psalter
“Lord Most High” Harris and Sadler
Greeting from God
We Greet Each Other
The Lord Is Close to the Broken-Hearted
Call to Confession
I sought the Lord, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.
This poor man called, and the Lord heard him;
he saved him out of all his troubles.
—Psalm 34:4–6
Song
“Pelas dores deste mundo / For the Troubles” Neto
Prayer of Confession
O Christ, you are the light of the world. Shine into the dark places and expose the sins of greed, oppression, hate and violence. Fill us with love, joy, peace, patience, and a willingness to forgive.
O Christ, you are the light of the world. We pray for the homeless, the refugees, the expelled and forgotten people everywhere. Strengthen us in our belief that you are a God of justice. Empower us with the determination to work for basic human rights.
O Christ, you are the light of the world. We pray for people everywhere that you would show us how we are to live together as neighbors, understanding and respecting one another. We remember before you the many places in the world where there is conflict between nations. We pray that love may determine a just solution.
O Christ, you are the light of the world. As the Risen Christ you broke the chains of death; free us from every kind of oppression. Breathe your Holy Spirit upon us. Make us a people of hope who live in lands where there is peace and justice for everyone.
—Pocket Prayers for Peace and Justice, compiled by Christian Aid. Prayers for Peacemakers, page 46, by Women of Jerusalem, Church House Publishing, 2004, © The Archbishops' Council of the Church of England. Used by permission. copyright@churchofengland.org.
Assurance of Pardon
The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;
he delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
The righteous person may have many troubles,
but the Lord delivers him from them all.
—Psalm 34:17–19
Song
“Blest Are They” (st. 1, 2, 5) Haas
Statement of Faith
What do you believe about God the Father?
I believe in Almighty God,
who guided the people in exile and in exodus,
the God of Joseph in Egypt and Daniel in Babylon,
the God of foreigners and immigrants.
What do you believe about God the Son?
I believe in Jesus Christ,
a displaced Galilean,
who was born away from his people and his home,
who fled his country with his parents when his life was in danger,
and returning to his own country suffered the oppression
of the tyrant Pontius Pilate, the servant of a foreign power,
who then was persecuted, beaten, and finally tortured,
accused and condemned to death unjustly.
But on the third day, this scorned Jesus rose from the dead,
not as a foreigner but to offer us citizenship in heaven.
What do you believe about God the Spirit?
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the eternal immigrant from God’s kingdom among us,
who speaks all languages, lives in all countries,
and reunites all races.
I believe that the church is the secure home
for the foreigner and for all believers who constitute it,
who speak the same language and have the same purpose.
I believe that the communion of the saints begins
when we accept the diversity of the saints.
I believe in the forgiveness of sin, which makes us all equal,
and in reconciliation, which identifies us more
than does race, language, or nationality.
What do you believe about the life to come?
I believe that in the resurrection
God will unite us as one people
in which all are distinct
and all are alike at the same time.
Beyond this world, I believe in life eternal
in which no one will be an immigrant
but all will be citizens of God’s kingdom,
which will never end. Amen.
—Book of Common Worship, 2018 edition. © 2018, Westminster John Knox Press. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Special Music
“Refugee King (Away from the Manger)” Scheer, Vice, Benedict, and Ruth
God Speaks to Us Words of Grace
Scripture Reading
Matthew 2:1–8, 12–23
Message
“Fear of the Stranger” (Part 2)
We Dedicate Ourselves to God’s Work and Go Out to Serve
Song
“Imagine” Getty
Declaration of Faith
How does the knowledge of God’s creation and providence help us?
We can be patient when things go against us,
thankful when things go well,
and for the future we can have
good confidence in our faithful God and Father
that nothing in creation will separate us from his love.
For all creatures are so completely in God’s hand
that without his will
they can neither move nor be moved.
—Heidelberg Catechism, Q&A 28, Translation © 2011, Faith Alive Christian Resources. Used by permission.
Even now,
as history unfolds
in ways we know only in part,
we are assured
that God is with us in our world,
holding all things in tender embrace
and bending them to his purpose.
The confidence that the Lord is faithful
gives meaning to our days
and hope to our years.
The future is secure,
for our world belongs to God.
—Our World Belongs to God, para. 12, © 2008, Christian Reformed Church in North America, Grand Rapids MI. www.crcna.org. Used by permission.
Parting Blessing
Song
“The Lord Is My Salvation” Getty
