This is part of the worship series,
"Come Let Us Worship and Bow Down"
Series Introduction
Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4
Week two
Spending Time in God’s Presence
Scripture
New Testament Lesson: John 14:7–17
Text: Psalm 27
Sermon: Seek His Face
God is light because God is love. Love is the source of the truest vision. We say that love is blind, but anyone who has truly loved some other person through good times and bad, faithfully over many years—anyone who has loved that way knows that love is not blind. Infatuation is blind, but love sees everything. C. S. Lewis says: “He who loves, sees.” Love sees the other person whole and complete, distinct from myself, gloriously individual. John Bayley’s recent book, An Elegy for Iris, is about his wife, Iris Murdoch, the world-renowned philosopher and prolific novelist. Iris (who recently passed away) had Alzheimer’s disease, and most people who met her could see no trace of the woman responsible for so much scholarship. But John Bayley could still see her. Because her husband loved her, he could still see the Iris he married in the disabled woman he cared for.
That is how God loves each of us, seeing the true person within. That is how God loves everything that exists, seeing its truest nature. Our love may generate flickers of light, but God, who is love, is light. This light is what the psalmist is seeking when he urges his own soul, “Seek his face.” But the psalmist knew full well that he’d never attain this vision. Even Moses wasn’t allowed to see the face of God, because to see God would mean annihilation—like a piece of paper in a fire.
And yet this yearning, this longing for God driven by love for him that wants nothing more than to see him, keeps emerging. So, in the gospel of John, when Jesus is having an intimate conversation with his disciples, Philip asks for the thing he wants most. “Show us the Father,” he begs. Even though he knows that to see God is to die, Philip wants to see God.
But in Jesus, an amazing thing happens. In Jesus, we see the face of God, and we do not die. Rather, Jesus takes that death on himself. He offers himself for us. He is both light and salvation.
Liturgical Resources
Call to Worship
It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High,
to declare your steadfast love in the morning
and your faithfulness by night,
to the music of the lute and the harp,
to the melody of the lyre.
For you, O Lord, have made me glad by your work;
at the works of your hands I sing for joy.
—Psalm 92:1–4 NRSVUE
Opening Time of Praise
“Be Exalted, O God” (Psalms 57 & 108) Maranatha!
“God Is My Great Desire” (Psalm 63) Dudley-Smith
“O Worship the King” (Psalm 104) Grant
“Be Exalted, O God”
Call to Confession: Psalm 24:3–5
Prayer of Confession (sung)
“Have Mercy in Your Goodness, Lord” Webber
[or read Psalm 51 in unison]
Assurance of Pardon:
The Lord is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
He will not always accuse,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
He does not deal with us according to our sins
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far he removes our transgressions from us.
As a father has compassion for his children,
so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him.
For he knows how we were made;
he remembers that we are dust.
—Psalm 103:8–14 NRSVUE
Prayer for Illumination: Psalm 43:3
Musical Settings of the Text
Metrical Settings of Psalm 27
“God Is My Strong Salvation” Montgomery
“O Lord, You Are My Light” Psalter
Choir Anthems
“The Lord Is My Saving Light” Witchger (G.I.A.; this is a very accessible gospel-style choir anthem that includes a chorus on which the congregation joins in.)
“Hide Not Thou Thy Face” Farrant (setting of v. 9 only)
Alternate Setting
“The Lord Is My Light,” Taizé a round with several possible instrumental descants.
Prayers of the People
Introduce the Prayers of the People with Psalm 102, using “O Lord, Hear My Prayer.” Taize A speaker reads the psalm; the congregation responds with the refrain.
Refrain First time choir; second time all. The choir may continue to hum the refrain during the reading.
Psalm 102:1–7 (read); Refrain
Psalm 102:8–11(read); Refrain
Psalm 102:12–17 (read); Refrain
Psalm 102:18–22 (read); Refrain
Psalm 102:23–28 (read); Refrain
Prayers of the People; Refrain
Benediction
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face to shine upon us,
that your way may be known upon earth,
your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise you, O God;
let all the peoples praise you.
—Psalm 67:1–3 NRSVUE
Revised Common Lectionary
Year A: Epiphany—Third Sunday after the Epiphany
Year A: Easter—Fifth Sunday of Easter
Year A: Easter—Sixth Sunday of Easter
Year C: Lent—Second Sunday in Lent
Year C: Easter—Day of Pentecost
