SPPC 28 Dec 2025

UPSA ORDER FOR WORSHIP ON THE LORD'S DAY WITHOUT HOLY COMMUNION

The Bible is carried into the church.

Call to Worship

A Scripture text calling to worship, such as one of the following, is said.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Phm.3

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. Jn.1:14

The hour is coming, and now is,

when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth;

for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.

God is Spirit,

and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. Jn.4:23f.

Do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus

were baptized into His death?

Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death,

that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father,

even so we also should walk in newness of life. Rom.6:3f.

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 - oly God we prtaise Thy name

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=TVBQYnfkiBM

Prayer of Praise

The following or another prayer of the day appropriate to the season may be used:

God of light and truth, you are beyond our grasp or conceiving.

Before the brightness of your presence the angels veil their faces.

With lowly reverence and adoring love we acclaim your glory

and sing your praise,

for you have shown us your truth and love in Jesus Christ our Saviour.

Amen.

Or

Lord God, you have appointed in heaven

orders and hosts of angels and archangels for the service of your glory.

Grant that with our entrance into this church

there may be an entrance of holy angels serving with us to glorify your goodness.

For to you is due all glory, honour and worship:

to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, now and for ever.

Amen.

The Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments or else the two Great Commandments (Matt.22:35-37) may be read.

Alternatively they may be read after the sermon in place of the Creed.

God spoke these words and said: I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods but me. You shall not make for yourself any idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or worship them. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy. For six days you shall labour and do all your work. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. Honour your father and your mother so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour. You shall not covet your neighbour’s house; you shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, or slaves, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbour.

Lord, have mercy upon us, and write all these your laws in our hearts.

Call to Confession

The minister says one of the following:

‘Come now, and let us reason together,’ says the Lord,

‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool.’ Isa.1:18

Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before. Ac.3:19f.

Jesus answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you,

Unless one is born of water and of the Spirit,

he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.’ Jn.3:5

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens,

Jesus, the Son of God,

let us hold fast our confession.

For we do not have a high priest

who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,

but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace,

that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Heb.4:14-16

If we say that we have no sin,

we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

If we confess our sins,

He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 Jn.1:8f.

My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin.

And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father,

Jesus Christ the righteous.

And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins,

and not for ours only but also for the whole world. 1 Jn.2:1f.

Prayer of Confession

The minister says:

Let us confess our sin to God.

Comforter, Spirit of Truth, you who are everywhere and fill all things,

the treasury of blessings and giver of life.

Come and abide within us,

cleanse us from all impurity and save our souls.

Or

Holy Trinity, have mercy on us.

Father, cleanse us from our sins.

Lord, pardon our iniquities.

Holy Spirit, visit and heal our sicknesses for your Name's sake.

Lord have mercy.

Have mercy on me, O God,

according to your steadfast love;

according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,

and cleanse me from my sin!

For I know my transgressions,

and my sin is ever before me.

Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight,

so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,

and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,

and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;

wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Let me hear joy and gladness;

let the bones that you have broken rejoice.

Hide your face from my sins,

and blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O God,

and renew a right spirit within me.

Cast me not away from your presence,

and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation,

and uphold me with a willing spirit. Psalm 51:1-19

Pause.

The minister then says the following sentence and one of the texts that follow:

Hear the word of God’s forgiving grace:

And the Lordpassed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth. Ex.4:6

When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic,

‘Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you.’ Matt.9:2

When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman,

He said to her, ‘Woman, where are those accusers of yours?

Has no one condemned you?’

She said, ‘No one, Lord.’

And Jesus said to her, ‘Neither do I condemn you;

go and sin no more.’ Jn.8:10f.

Therefore, having been justified by faith,

we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand,

and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Rom.5:1f.

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,

who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus

has made me free from the law of sin and death. Rom.8:1f.

But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you,

He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies

through His Spirit who dwells in you. Rom.8:11

Who is he who condemns?

It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen,

who is even at the right hand of God,

who also makes intercession for us. Rom.8:34

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;

old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 2 Cor.5:17

The minister then says:

To all those who truly acknowledge that they are sinners, humble themselves before God, and look to Jesus Christ for their salvation, I declare the forgiveness of their sins, in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. John Calvin

Know that you are forgiven and be at peace.

Amen.

(Children’s Talk)

Hymn - ♫ Rescuer (Good News) by Rend Collective LYRICS - in my pc’s hard driove

Prayer for Illumination

Prepare our hearts, O Lord, to hear your Word.

Quieten in us any voice but your own,

and grant that by the power of your Spirit

we may hear and believe your gospel

and learn to obey your will;

through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Scripture Readings

One of the following may be said.

Man shall not live by bread alone,

but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Matt.4:4

Heaven and earth shall pass away,

but my words shall not pass away. Matt.24:35

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life,

which is in the paradise of God.’ Rev.2:7

Lessons are read from the Old Testament, an Epistle and a Gospel

Janet

The Psalm - Psalm 147

The Old Testament - Isaiah 61:10 - 62:3

Jenny

Gospel John 1:1-18

The Epistle Galatians 3:23 - 4:4-7

Sunday Morning, December 28

Title: Teach Us to Number Our Days

Text: “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” (Ps. 90:12 RSV).

Scripture Reading: James 4:13–15 “13 Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.””

Introduction

We come to the end of a year with joyful thoughts combined with solemn thoughts. We recognize that we are one year closer to the end of our earthly pilgrimage. We need to be reminded of the brevity of time and of the importance of being at our best at all times. It is true as the wise thinker said, “We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths; in feelings, not in figures on a dial.” Life is meant to be something much more than “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” Time is given to us to be used in God’s service.

Time is precious. Time is short. Time is passing. Time is uncertain. Time is irrevocable when gone. Time is that for which we are accountable. Thomas Fuller said, “He lives long that lives well, and time misspent is not lived but lost.” Each moment, as it passes, is the meeting point of two eternities.

As we come to the end of the year, we need to recognize a number of things:

1. T

I. The child of God may live with a noble disregard for time if death is no barrier but only a door opening into the Father’s home.

A. “This is eternal life, that they know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3 RSV).

B. “Beloved, we are God’s children now; it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure” (1 John 3:2–3 RSV).

C. The apostle Paul communicated words of faith, hope, and assurance as he wrote to the saints in Corinth: “So we are always of good courage; we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. We are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:6–8 RSV). God did not make us to be earthlings alone. He made us for eternity, and he has given us the Holy Spirit as an indwelling presence and as the guarantee that he will rescue believers from death so they can live with him for eternity (v. 5).

II. The nonbeliever should accept God’s offer in Christ with great joy now.

A. We need to gently and lovingly and appropriately remind our dear friends who are nonbelievers that the number of their days of opportunity are decreasing.

B. With the help of the Holy Spirit, we need to help our unsaved friends recognize that their days of opportunity for serving God after being saved are declining with the passing of every day. Now is the acceptable time. Now is the day in which God offers the gift of forgiveness and the granting of mercy.

III. We should live every day as if it were our last day.

What would you do if this were the last day of your life? A farmer who knew God and who had lived a faithful life said in response to that question, “I would go plow.” If we would live each day of our lives as if it were the last, there are a number of things that we should do.

A. Begin the day with a prayer of thanks to God for his blessings upon you.

Name them one by one.

B. Accept the day as an opportunity to help.

1. Help God do his work in the world today.

2. Help yourself to be a better person and do a better job.

3. Help your family members to achieve their goals.

4. Help others in the sphere of your influence to achieve worthwhile goals.

5. Help others along the way through the day as you have time and opportunity.

Respond to everyone with love— a persistent, unbreakable spirit of goodwill that relates to others in terms of their highest possible good. C. Plan the day with top values out front.

1. Draw up a list of things that need to be done.

2. Number them in the order of their importance.

3. Concentrate on the most important item first.

4. Do one thing at a time.

D. Schedule the day and allow for some interruptions. Recognize that while some interruptions are time killers, other interruptions are divine appointments.

Conclusion

The psalmist prayed that God would help him to number his days that he might secure wisdom and face life with the highest possible intelligence and the deepest possible insight.

Do not postpone living. Make those important decisions that need to be made. Procrastination can cause you to waste time and lose time. Today is the only day you have. Decide today for Jesus Christ if you have not let him become your Savior up to this point. Decide today to build a Christian home with your partner. Decide today to ask for and to grant forgiveness. Decide today to find a usefulness beyond the value of the marketplace. Decide today to find a means of extending your life’s usefulness.

Intimations by the session clerk Mr. John Oberholzer tent -

The Offering

Hymn All Creatures of Our God and King

The minister says one of the following:

‘No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Matt.6:24

And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them,

‘Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more

than all those who are contributing to the offering box.

For they all contributed out of their abundance,

but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had,

all she had to live on.’ Mk.12:42-44

The Lord Jesus, said, It is more blessed to give than to receive. Ac.20:35

The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly,

and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

Each one must give as he has made up his mind,

not reluctantly or under compulsion,

for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Cor.9:6-7

Thanks are given for the offering:

Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. 1 Chron.29:11

Or

Blessed are you, God of all creation;

through your goodness we have these gifts to share.

Accept and use our offerings for your glory

and for the service of your gospel.

Blessed be God forever.

The people may be seated.

Prayers of Thanksgiving

The minister says one of the following texts and then leads the congregation in a prayer of thanks.

I will praise you, O Lord, with my whole heart;

I will tell of all your marvellous works.

I will be glad and rejoice in you;

I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. Ps.9:1-2

Oh, give thanks to the Lord!

Call upon his name;

Make known his deeds among the peoples! 1 Chron.16:8

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No0w unto him