Prayer and Announcements 1/16

Announcements

18| BI-MONTHLY BUSINESS MEETING

TUESDAY,  JANUARY 18, 2022 | 7:00PM

We will hold our Bi-Monthly Business Meeting on Tuesday, January 18th, at 7:00pm in the Turquoise Room at Heritage. The meeting agenda and financial reports are available on the foyer table. Everyone is welcome to attend.

23| ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETING

SUNDAY, JANUARY 23, 2022 | 12:15PM

Heritage will hold its Annual Business Meeting immediately after the worship service on Sunday, January 23rd. All are welcome to attend.

25| MEN’S MINISTRY MEETING

TUESDAY,  JANUARY 25, 2022| 6:00PM

The Men’s Ministry Meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 25th, at 6:00pm. All men are welcome to attend.

FEBRUARY

13| SAVE THE DATE—25TH ANNIVERSARY

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2022 | 10:30AM

Heritage will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a special service and a luncheon on Sunday, February 13th. Please plan to come and fellowship with us. There will be no Sunday School that Sunday.

Special Announcement

"As some of you may know, there has been a new bill that has been passed and come into Law in the country of Canada that criminalizes any practice, treatment or service designed to, "change a person’s gender expression so that it conforms to the sex assigned to the person at birth; repress or reduce non-heterosexual attraction or sexual behavior; repress a person’s non-cisgender gender identity; or repress or reduce a person’s gender expression that does not conform to the sex assigned to the person at birth.”

According to Canadian Law the belief in God’s design for marriage and sexuality is deemed a “myth” and due to the broadness of the language of this bill Pastors and biblical counselors can be imprisoned for up to 5 years for preaching, teaching or counseling a person to repent of their sin and follow the Lordship of Christ in regard to the sexuality.

Now the reason we elders are bringing this to your attention today is twofold. First, we want to encourage you all to be praying for the Pastors and churches in Canada who could very well be entering into a time of persecution and trial. Pray that those whom God has called to preach and teach his word would be filled with boldness, with strength and with unashamedness to preach the whole counsel of God. Pray that the members of faithful churches in Canada would not be filled with fear of what man can do to them, but instead be filled with fear and faith in God, that His word is true, that He is the Good Shepherd, that the gate’s of hell shall not prevail against His blood-bought bride.

Secondly, we want to exhort the members of this church to prepare our hearts. Similar bills to what was passed in Canada have been making their way through the state legislatures of California, New Jersey, New York and Nevada. We very well may find ourselves in the same situation in the coming years. Do not let your hearts be filled with fear at this prospect, be strong and courages and trust in the Lord who is sovereign, who is King. In His Word He tells us, "12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” 1 Peter 4:12-13. Furthermore, I want to encourage you all to heed the teaching we received from Pastor Greg last summer. In preaching on Romans 1, Greg taught us that "how Christians respond in the wider culture, as well as to individuals who are mired in or are struggled with this sin will go a long way toward winsomely gaining that audience for the sake of the Gospel. We should not fear or be discouraged. But we should love; we should be compassionate. We should be gracious and kind. We should just see this as the judgement of God upon the world. The answer to the sin of homosexuality is the same as for any other sin: belief in Christ as the Son of God who takes away the sin of the world. We must be ready with love and grace as we lovingly bring the gospel to others.”

God is good all the time. All the time…God is good…and His steadfast love endures forever. To which we all say, Amen!"

Membership Announcement

Now, I have one last announcement and it’s a special one. Today we are publicly introducing new members who are identifying HCF as their local church. This is for the purpose of giving new members a proper introduction to the HCF church family and the church family to them.

We are asking you new members to affirm the following: I affirm that I am a member of the Body of Christ by grace through faith in Christ alone and I am publicly identifying with Heritage Christian Fellowship as my local church. I recognize the Bible as God’s only written Word and sole authority for my faith and practice and I will abide by it. I will submit to the leadership of the Elders of Heritage Christian Fellowship.

Steve and Michelle Baca, Angelo and Mikayla Dionisio, Joey Ferreri and Inessa Boland, soon to be Ferreri, will you please rise before the congregation and acknowledge your commitment to this statement by standing? Will you remain standing for prayer?

Prayer - Lord you have called us and set us apart by your temple and your body. You have made us the household of faith, the flock of the Good Shepherd, the branches of the true vine. And Lord we come to you today praising and thanking you that you have justified these new members of your body in your blood at the cross, that you have regenerated their hearts and given the gift of faith, and that you have filled their hearts with the conviction and commitment to be members of your church. May you continue to move them to greater heights of love, service and dedication to the fellow members of this church, to the teaching of your word and to the exaltation of your Glory. We pray this in your holy name, Amen

Now I will read the our commitment to you new members. The Elders and members of HCF are committed to the spiritual wellbeing of the new members. The Elders will provide teaching, oversight and be examples to the new members and all the members will encourage and admonish one another in the Lord.

Call to Worship

Let’s join them in standing as I read the call to worship and remain standing for Carlos to lead us in congregational singing

Psalm 136:1–4 ESV

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. 2 Give thanks to the God of gods, for his steadfast love endures forever. 3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords, for his steadfast love endures forever; 4 to him who alone does great wonders, for his steadfast love endures forever;

Prayer

Adoration

Holy God we come to worship you. You are holy. You are majestic. You are faithful and you are true. You are the Supreme being who created the universe for your glory. You reign above all the earth as its King. You are the sovereign Lord. Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom and your dominion will continue for all eternity. You are gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. You lift us who are falling and weak. You strengthen the hearts of your people who are weary and burdened. There is nothing that is outside of your sight and there is no one who is outside of your care. You are an amazing God and your steadfast love endures forever!

Confession

Oh God, in light of how perfect and awesome you are, we can’t help but acknowledge our imperfection and our sin. Daily we battle against our flesh and so often we fail to resist temptation and violate your commands and sin against You. So often we set our hearts on the pursuits of this world and we have idolized comforts and pleasures that are so readily available to us. Lord God forgive us! We are sinful but you are a Forgiving Father who has forgiven all our sins at the cross. We are at times unfaithful, but your faithfulness and lovingkindness does not end. We are weak but your are a Strong Tower in whom we can find refuge and protection.

Thanksgiving

Glorious God we thank you that you have made us your children and that you have made yourself our God. Father God we thank You for sending Your Son to redeem us to you. Jesus Christ, our Lord, we thank you for humbling yourself by coming to earth as a Servant and suffering great torture and death on a cross. Lord you bore the wrath of God in our place. Jesus thank you! Father we thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to us to regenerate our hearts and to be our gracious Helper as we strive to pursue You and your will. God you are a gracious and loving God and you have filled our lives with countless blessings. Lord, every breath, every heartbeat is a gift from you and you have so richly blessed us in your Son far and above our every breath and heart beat. And we thank you for your mercy and your grace upon us.

Supplication

Oh Lord we long to be holy as your are holy! Please help us as we seek to put off our sinful flesh and put on the character of our Savior, Jesus. Father God you possess all wisdom, your Son Jesus is wisdom personified, we pray that you might give us heavenly wisdom today. Open our eyes to behold wonderful things from your word today. May You work through the preaching of your servant, Jeff,  transform us to be a more holy, righteous and wise people.

God I pray for that you would grant the requests our flock…

We pray for the governing officials you have placed over us...

We pray for the governing officials of Canada...

We pray for the pastors and churches in Canada facing incoming persecution

God we know that you love us and that you have power do to all that we ask. Lord we trust you and know that you will do so according to your will.

Christ we pray that your name will be exalted through your church today. In your holy name Amen.

Reading

Romans 5:12-17 “12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned— 13 for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. 16 The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. 17 For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.”