Installation of Elders and Deacons and Sanctuary Rededication

Installation of Elders and Deacons

Today, we have come to install the elders and deacons of Morganfield Christian Church to the office God has called them to. Christ alone is the source of all Christian ministry and through the ages He has called both men and women to serve Him in His Church. By the Holy Spirit all those who believe recieve a ministry to witness to Jesus as Savior and Lord, and to love and serve those with whom they live and work. We are ambassadors for Christ, who reconciles and makes whole. We are the salt of the earth; we are the light of the world. Following Christ’s resurrection and ascension, God has given the church forms of assistance and leadership through the roles of elder and deacon. We are here to honor this tradition where God calls and empowers elders and deacons by the Holy Spirit to fullfil their role in His Church.

Presentation of Elders and Deacons

I ask at this time that all 5 Elders and 7 Deacons, please come forth and form a line facing the congreagtion, with the Deacons on my right and the Elders on my left.

As of May 19th, 2024 this congregation has elected the following people to the office of Elder and Deacon, when I call your name please take a step forward:

To continue in the Office of Elder: Chris Willett; Joe Sprague; Steve Durban

To be reinstalled to the Office of Elder: Russ Perkins

To be installed to the Office of Elder: Nate Goben

To be installed to the Office of Deacon: Sharon Willett; Chris Duncan; Jackie Durban; Joshua Layson; Olivia Goben; Jimmy Cox; Lindsey Schaffter

Reading of God’s Word Concerning Elders

Reading of 1 Peter 5:1-4.

Reading of Titus 1:6-9.

Reading of 1 Timothy 3:1-7.

Reading of God’s Word Concerning Deacons

Reading of 1 Timothy 3:8–13.

Questions for Deacons and Elders

For all:

Do you believe in your heart that you are called by Christ’s church, and therefore by God, to this office?

Yes.

Do you believe the books of the Old and New Testaments to be the Word of God and the perfect doctrine of salvation, rejecting all contrary beliefs?

Yes.

Will you be diligent in your study of Holy Scripture and in your use of the means of grace?

I will, and I ask God to help me.

Will you pray for God’s people and lead them by your own example in faithful service and holy living?

I will, and I ask God to help me.

Will you accept the church’s order and governance, submitting to ecclesiastical discipline should you become delinquent in either life or doctrine?

I will, and I ask God to help me.

Will you be loyal to the witness and work of Morganfield Christian Church, using all your abilities to further its Christian mission here and throughout the world?

I will, and I ask God to help me.

For the Elders:

As elders, will you faithfully, diligently, and cheerfully study God’s Word, oversee the household of faith, encourage spiritual growth, maintain loving discipline, and provide for the proclamation of the gospel and the celebration of the sacraments?

I will, and I ask God to help me.

For the Deacons:

As deacons, will you faithfully, diligently, and cheerfully manifest Christ’s love and care, aiding in the gathering of the offerings of God’s people, aiding in the distribution of the Lord’s Supper, visiting and comforting the distressed, ministering to the poor and needy, and striving to advance God’s reign of justice and peace?

I will, and I ask God to help me.

Prayer for Elders and Deacons

At this time I will ask the family members of the Elders and Deacons to come stand behind their loved one.

I will annoint them with oil signifying that they have been set apart as leaders of Morganfield Christian Church, that they might go forth, empowered by the Holy Spirit to preform the duties of the role God has called them to.

I ask that the congregation now stand and lift their hands towards our Elders and Deacons as we offer up a prayer to God and to please remain standing following the prayer:

God of grace, pour out your Holy Spirit, gentle as a dove, burning as fire, upon Chris Willett, Joe Sprague, Steve Durban, Russ Perkins and Nate Goben and fill them with grace and power for this ministry of Elder in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

God of grace, pour out your Holy Spirit, gentle as a dove, burning as fire, upon Sharon Willett, Chris Duncan, Jackie Durban, Joshua Layson, Olivia Goben, Jimmy Cox, and Lindsey Schaffter and fill them with grace and power for this ministry of Deacon in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Dedication of Members

While having leaders in the church is important, those of whom they serve are equally important. Each of those standing in front of you today will need your support and so members of Morganfield Christian Church may we at this time affirm your covenant with the Elders and Deacons of whom God has given us.

I will now ask you questions to affirm this covenant and if you agree please reply with “we do”.

Beloved in the Lord Jesus Christ, do you receive in the name of the Lord, these elders and deacons as duly elected servants of Christ?

We do.

Do you promise to respect them for the sake of the offices for which they have been chosen?

We do.

Do you promise to encourage and pray for them, to labor together in obedience to the gospel for the unity, purity, and peace of the church, the welfare of the whole world, and the honor of our Lord Jesus Christ?

We do.

Pronoucement of Installation

Upon your affirmation of your covenant, beloved people of God, receive these elders and deacons as Christ’s own servants. Support them in love, that their work may bear fruit. In the name and by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, the only head of the church, I declare that Chris Willett, Joe Sprague, Steve Durban, Russ Perkins will continue in the Office of Elder and Nate Goben is now installed to the Office of Elder and Sharon Willett, Chris Duncan, Jackie Durban, Joshua Layson, Olivia Goben, Jimmy Cox, and Lindsey Schaffter are now installed to the Office of Deacon.

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Sanctuary Rededication

Acts 7:48 tells us that the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands. His Word tells us that He will dwell in us and walk among us (2 Corinthians 6:16). In us, God has built a dwelling place for Himself by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:22).

And still, throughout the New Testament we see that there were places of which believers gathered together (Acts 2:2-4; Acts 3; Colossians 4:15).

Multiple locations, whether in an upper room (Acts 2:2-4), the outer courts of the temple (Acts 3), or in someone’s home (Colossians 4:15), believers would gather together to worship God in one accord.

Over 2,000 years later, this is still the case and for Morganfield Christian Church, all of us and those who came before us worshiped in this sacntuary since it was completed and dedicated in the Spring of 1894.

The last time Morganfield Christian Church had a Service of Dedication or what I am calling a Sanctuary Rededication was on October 18th, 1992 when the sanctuary was updated and today, June 9th, 2024 we will be following in their footsteps as we too will rededicate this house of worship to God they same way they did back in 1992 through a Litany of Dedication and a Unison Prayer of Dedication.

Many of you might not know what a litany is as we do not use them, but in short a litany is where I will read a statement and then there will be a statement you will repond back with. It will be on the two TVs for you to read. Following the litany we will have a prayer that we will all say in unison, it will be on the TVs as well. May we proceed with the Litany of Dedication.

Litany of Dedication

For the proclamation of the Good News to all who enter this sanctuary:

We dedicate this Your House, O God, for Your Word is a lamp unto our feet, and a light unto our path.

To the spirit of the fruitful fellowship and Christian love in the life and work of the church,

We dedicate this place of assembly. For as in one body we have many members…so we though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.

For those restless, weary souls who may find their peace and rest as they rise toward God in the singing of hymns, in prayer and meditation, even as the great tower rises to catch the first ray of daawn with its peace and quiet;

We dedicate this house of prayer to an ever listening God.

Toward the earnest search for Truth wherever found in the secrets of God’s good earth, and above all, that Trith revealed in Holy Scripture which puts eternity in our hearts, and binds those who seek a fruitful fellowship of life and work by God’s power that works in us;

We dedicate this sanctuary to God who is the source of Truth.

For the stranger who enters here and is caught up by the spirit of heart warming love within these hallowed walls and becomes one with the company of believers in worship as all hearts are blended in praise and thanksgiving;

We dedicate this Haven, O God.

For little children who will be committed to the love care of God, and for the youth who will be guided to the call of Christ, and for their parents who seek to know the highest affection, the noblest discipline, and the purest religion,

We dedicate this blessed Church home.

In grateful remembrance of those who have gone before us and for the blessed hope of a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens;

We dedicate the earthly sanctuary in the hope of the life to come.

That those who mourn may receive hope and light and be comforted while walking through the dark valleys of life;

We dedicate this Dewelling of God’s Spirit.

For those desiring God’s presence in their married life, and come to this Holy place to exchange their solemn vows in God’s presence;

We dedicate this sanctuary to Jesus who blessed marriage at Cana by His very presence.

For those who come to recieve the Holy Rite of Baptism as a symbol of obedience and dedication and rise to walk in newness of life;

We dedicate this place of life commitment where we were buried with the Christ by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of God, we too might walk in newness of life.

For the sacred moments of Communion when the children of God, in penitence and humility, observe the Lord’s Supper as a remembrance of Christ’s sacrificial death for our redemption, joining with all Christians about this table of remembrance,

We dedicate this place of Grace.

With sincere gratitude and heart-felt appreciation to God and all, who by their time, their talent, their treasure, their love and prayers have made this dream a reality;

With dedicate this blessed sanctuary and may what happens in this place florify you, O God, and witness to the faith that is represented by the symbols of our stained-glass window.

Unison Prayer of Dedication

With greatful hearts and joyous spirits, we lift our voices to give to you this work of our hands, this dream of our hearts.

Grant to us who will serve and worship here in this sanctuary, which we dedicate to you.

Make holy, O God, both our coming and going forth.

Enrich our lives through worship, and deepen in us our discipleship through service.

Quciken in us the spirit of courage and confidence that we may go forth from here to fashion something good from all the experiences of each day.

Yours, O Lord is the greatness, and the power, and the glory and the victory, and the majesty, for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is yours; yours is the Kingdom, O Lord.

You are exalted as head above all.

In Your Son, our Saviors name, Jesus, Amen.

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Closing of Service

As our worship team comes may we grab the hands of the person nearest to us. Together, may we recite the Lord’s Prayer following it with a moment of authentic worship led by our worship team to our Lord before we leave today.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen.

Moment of Worship