Dear friends,
THIS SUNDAY the Rev. Linda Faith Chalk will be leading us in worship.
WE ALWAYS NEED TO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK at that which we think we know so well. The parable of the Prodigal Son, as it is called, is one of those texts. We’ve heard the story and often, there are times that we could recite some of the words but in her commentary on this passage Chesley Harmon writes: The details of this story matter. There are all of the ways that the younger son has lost himself: the way he cuts himself off from his family, the way he lives “according to the flesh,” the way he is forced to a life where he isn’t even able to live out his Jewish identity with any semblance of integrity. There’s the way the older son reveals his heart and what’s been festering by what he says: his opinion of what his brother deserves, what he himself deserves, he fails to note what he himself has not done with his younger brother, who he feels most connected to, what he implies about how his father should feel… The father’s character is also revealed in the details: he proves his love for both his sons by what he says, but also by what he does. He has always been a companion to the older son, and he threw dignity to the wind by running out to the younger son even while the son was still on his way to repent; the father showed compassion and forgiveness even while the younger son was still a sinner. Even in its familiarity as we take a closer look it is possible that we see ourselves as either the younger or the older brother. Are we comfortable with that realization for wherever we find ourselves the love of our Heavenly Father does not change, but it can and will change us, if we are open to him.
Order of Service
Prelude
Welcome
Call to Worship
Hymn 371: “Love divine all loves excelling”
Prayer of Adoration
Prayer of Confession
Declaration of Grace
The Lord’s Prayer
Children’s Time
Hymn 324: “Great is thy faithfulness” (vs 2 en français)
Responsive Reading: Psalm 32
Gloria Patri
2 Corinthians 5: 16-21
Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32
Sermon: “Where is the far country for you?”
Confession of Faith – The Apostles’ Creed
Hymn: “We’re part of the blessing”
Offering and Offertory
Prayer of Thanksgiving and Intercession
Hymn 665: “Lord Jesus, you shall be my song” (vs 2&3 en français)
Benediction
Go now in peace
Postlude