the official UPCSA Order of Service 19/1/2025 Communion

FIRST ORDER of worship with HOLY COMMUNION

The words in bold may be said by the congregation.

The Bible is carried into the church.

Call to Worship

A Scripture verse that calls to worship is read, after which the minister says:

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Let us worship God.

Hymn of Praise

Praise to the Lord

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGAaRtkovZQ

Prayer of Praise

Heavenly Father,

We come before You with hearts full of gratitude and awe. You are the Creator of all things, the Source of our life and breath. Your love and mercy know no bounds, and Your grace sustains us each day.

We praise You for the beauty of Your creation, for the wonders of the earth and sky, and for the blessings You have bestowed upon us. Your majesty and power are beyond our understanding, yet Your love for us is personal and intimate.

Lord, we thank You for the gift of Your Son, Jesus Christ, who came to bring us salvation and hope. Through His sacrifice, we are redeemed and reconciled to You. We praise You for the Holy Spirit, our Comforter and Guide, who leads us in truth and righteousness.

As we gather together this Sunday, we lift our voices in praise and worship. May our songs and prayers be a sweet aroma to You. Fill us with Your Spirit, that we may serve You with joyful hearts and bring glory to Your name.

In Jesus’ name we pray,

Amen.

Confession

For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Heb.4:15f.

Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid: cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love You, and worthily magnify Your holy Name; through Christ our Lord. APB

Amen.

Prayer for Illumination

Guide us, O God, by your Word and Spirit, that in your light we may see light, in your truth find freedom, and in your will discover our peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Scripture Readings

Lessons are read from the Old Testament and a Gospel.

Janet - Isaiah 42:1-9

Jenny - Luke 3:15-22

Sermon 3. THE EMPOWERED CHURCH Acts 2:1–13 ILLUSTRATION: One of the more humorous quirks of scientific history is the debate over who should get the credit for discovering oxygen. Joseph Priestley, an English scientist and clergyman, is often given that honor because he was the first to publish his findings, doing so in 1774. Interestingly, Priestley originally called the gas, “dephlogisticated air.” However, in 1772, two years prior to Priestly’s find, a Swedish chemist named Carl Scheele independently discovered the gas that is vital to human existence. Strangely enough, the term oxygen didn’t actually come into use until 1775, when yet another chemist, Frenchman Antoine Lavoisier, discovered and named the gas we breathe. Lavoisier was the first to recognize oxygen as one of our natural elements. Regardless of who gets the credit, it’s odd to think of a human being “discovering” oxygen. Does a fish discover water? The truth is that oxygen literally surrounds us every day, and even if we choose to call it “dephlogisticated air,” we can’t live without it. The same is true of the Holy Spirit. 1. THE TIME OF THE BLESSING And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.—Acts 2:1 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete: Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.—Leviticus 23:15–16 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law.—Galatians 4:4 2. THE MEANS OF THE BLESSING And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.—Acts 2:2–3 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.—John 3:8 3. THE EFFECTS OF THE BLESSING And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.—Acts 2:3–4 At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.—Matthew 11:25 And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.—Acts 2:7–13 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)—2 Corinthians 10:4

Creed

The congregation, all standing, say the Nicene Creed, the Apostles’ Creed or another appropriate liturgical confession of faith.

The Peace

Peace I leave with you,

my peace I give to you;

not as the world gives do I give to you.

Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Jn.14:27

Brothers and sisters, let us share the peace of Christ with one another.

Peace be with you.

And also with you.

The Offering

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. Gal.6:10

Let us worship God with our tithes and offerings.

The offering is taken up.

If the gifts of bread and wine are not already on the Table, they are brought up and laid upon the Table.

The minister invites people to the Table with one of the following invitations:

This is the table of our Lord Jesus Christ.

All those who have been baptized in his name, including children,

are invited to share in this Holy Sacrament.

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden,

and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me;

for I am meek and lowly in heart:

and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matt.11:28-30

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock:

if any man hear my voice, and opens the door,

I will come in to him,

and will sup with him, and he with me. Rev.3:20

Then the minister says:

‘Surely the Lord is in this place.

This is none other than the house of God,

and this is the gate of heaven!’ Gen.28:16f.

What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits toward me?

I will take the cup of salvation,

and call upon the name of the Lord.

I will pay my vows to the Lord now

in the presence of all his people.

I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving,

and will call upon the name of the Lord. Ps.116:12-14,17

Let us lay aside the cares of this world,

for now we are to receive the King of all,

who comes accompanied by unseen hosts of angels.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

As the Lord Jesus, on the night of his arrest, took bread,

so I take these elements of bread and wine

to be set apart from all common use to this holy use and mystery.

The minister lifts the paten and then the chalice from the Table and lays his hands on the other vessels.

And as he gave thanks to God,

let us draw near to offer our prayer of thanksgiving.

Let us pray.

The Lord be with you.

And with your spirit.

Lift up your hearts.

We lift them up to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is our duty and our greatest joy to bless you,

to praise you, to thank you and to worship you

in every place where your glory resides,

for great is the majesty of your name,

Father, Son and Holy Spirit, ever-living and ever-merciful God.

You brought us into being out of nothing

and raised us up when we fell.

You left nothing undone until you led us to heaven

and lavished on us your future kingdom.

For all these things we thank you,

for the blessings we see and for those we cannot see.

We thank you that you are pleased to accept this worship from our hands,

when in heaven myriads of archangels and angels attend you,

and cherubim and seraphim, who sing, shout and cry aloud the victory hymn:

The following or another hymn that suitably expresses the same content is sung:

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God almighty!

All Thy works shall praise Thy name,

in earth and sky and sea.

Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty,

God in three persons, blessed Trinity.

Holy Father, we too cry out and say: You are holy and most holy,

you and your only Son and your Holy Spirit.

You are holy and most holy, and great is your glory.

You so loved the world that you gave your only begotten Son

that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Remembering all that he did for us,

the gifts he gave at the Supper,

the cross, the tomb, the resurrection on the third day,

the ascension into heaven,

the sitting at the right hand,

the second and glorious coming again,

we offer to you these gifts from your own gifts,

on behalf of all and for the sake of all.

We praise you, we bless you, we give thanks to you, Lord our God.

The following or another hymn that suitably expresses the same content is sung:

You are Lord, you are Lord,

You are risen from the dead, and you are Lord.

Every knee shall bow,

every tongue confess that you are Christ, the Lord.

Lord, pour out your Spirit upon us and upon these gifts.

May this bread and cup be for us the precious body and blood of your Christ,

that we who partakes of them may not come to judgement,

but may find purity of heart, forgiveness of sins,

the communion of the Holy Spirit, the treasures of the kingdom of heaven

and the paradise of your presence.

With one voice, and one burning heart,

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, majestic in holiness,

before all ages, and from everlasting to everlasting,

we acclaim You,

we praise you,

we bless you,

we give thanks to you,

we worship you,

now and forever.

The Amen is sung.

The Lord’s Prayer is sung, or else said in the following form:

Our Father, which art in heaven,

hallowed be thy Name.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done in earth,

as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive them that trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory,

for ever and ever. Matt.6:9-13

Amen.

The minister says the words of the institution of the Lord’s Supper in the form one of the two following texts.

While saying the words of institution he breaks the bread and pours the wine.

These accompanying actions are performed slowly and deliberately.

And as they were eating, Jesus took bread,

blessed and broke it,

gave it to the disciples and said,

‘Take, eat; this is my body.’

Then he took the cup, and gave thanks,

and gave it to them, saying,

‘Drink from it, all of you.

For this is my blood of the new covenant,

which is shed for many for the remission of sins. Matt.26:26-28

The Lord Jesus on the same night in which he was betrayed took bread;

and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said,

‘Take, eat; this is my body which is broken for you;

do this in remembrance of me.’

In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying,

‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood.

This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ 1 Cor.11:23-26

Holy things are for the holy.

Only Jesus Christ is holy.

We are made holy in him. 1 Cor.1.30

Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world,

have mercy on us.

Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world,

have mercy on us.

Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world,

Grant us peace. Jn.1.29

The minister partakes of the bread, and without undue delay, the cup.

The body of Christ, broken (or given) for you. Matt. 26.26

Amen.

The blood of Christ, shed for you. Matt. 26.28

Amen.

When all have received Communion, the vessels are returned to the Table. The minister concludes:

Bless the Lord, O my soul;

and all that is within me, bless his holy name!

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits:

who forgives all your iniquities,

who heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from destruction,

who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,

who satisfies your mouth with good things,

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. Ps.103:1-5

Intimations

By Mr John Oberholzen - the Session Clerk

Commission

The minister dismisses the congregation with a charge such as one of the following:

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ Matt.28:18-20 Amen.

Benediction

Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do his will, working in you what is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Heb.3:20-22 Amen.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. 2 Cor.13:14 Amen.

The Bible is be carried out through the front door of the church and may be followed by the bread and wine, the offerings the Communion elders and the minister, in procession.