Order of Service - May 4

GOD CALLS
CALL TO WORSHIP
—Acts 2:24
God raised him up,
loosing the pangs of death,
because it was not possible
for death to keep its hold on him.

Praise the Lord.
The Lord's name be praised!

SONG — Come People of the Risen King
(Keith Getty | Kristyn Getty | Stuart Townend/© 2007 Thankyou Music) CCLI #22022177

Come people of the Risen King
Who delight to bring Him praise
Come all and tune your hearts to sing
To the Morning Star of grace
From the shifting shadows of the earth
We will lift our eyes to Him
Where steady arms of mercy reach

To gather children in

Rejoice, rejoice! Let every tongue rejoice!
One heart one voice,
O Church of Christ rejoice!

Come those whose joy is morning sun
And those weeping through the night
Come those who tell of battles won
And those struggling in the fight
For His perfect love will never change
And His mercies never cease
But follow us through all our days
With the certain hope of peace

Come young and old from ev'ry land
Men and women of the faith
Come those with full or empty hands
Find the riches of His grace
Over all the world His people sing
Shore to shore we hear them call
The truth that cries through ev'ry age
Our God is all in all

SONG — This I Believe (The Creed)
(Ben Fielding | Matt Crocker/©2014 Hillsong Music Publishing Australia) CCLI #22022177

Our Father everlasting
The all creating One
God Almighty
Through Your Holy Spirit
Conceiving Christ the Son
Jesus our Saviour

I believe in God our Father
I believe in Christ the Son
I believe in the Holy Spirit
Our God is three in One
I believe in the resurrection
That we will rise again
For I believe in the Name of Jesus

Our judge and our defender
Suffered and crucified
Forgiveness is in You
Descended into darkness
You rose in glorious life
Forever seated high

I believe in You
I believe You rose again
I believe that Jesus Christ is Lord
I believe in life eternal
I believe in the virgin birth
I believe in the saints' communion
And in Your holy Church
I believe in the resurrection
When Jesus comes again
For I believe in the Name of Jesus

GOD CLEANSES
CONFESSION
Lord, forgive us of our sins, and wash us in your Word. Turn our hearts of stone into hearts of flesh. Give us ears that we may hear, and eyes that we may see. For we have failed to love you with our whole hearts; we have turned to our own way.

Lead us in the paths of righteousness for your name's sake. Grant us a holy walk, devoted discipleship, and true compassion, that we may live to your glory. Through Christ our risen Lord, Amen.

ASSURANCE
—Ezekiel 36:25-26, NIV
I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean;
I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you;
I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

BAPTISM
Manjula Thiyagaraj

GOD COMMUNES 

OFFERING

If you wish to give financially to The Vine Presbyterian Church, we have online giving available, visit: www.thevine.to/give.

PASSING THE PEACE

SERMON
Union with Christ
By Kiernan Stringer
Ephesians 1:1-14

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To God’s holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will – 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfilment – to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.

11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of his glory.

The word of the Lord
Thanks be to God

THE LORD'S SUPPER

We welcome all baptized Christians to receive Holy Communion with us. If you are exploring the Christian faith, please use this time to meditate on the following prayers.

Prayer for Those Searching for Truth

Jesus, you claim to be the way, the truth, and the life. As I consider the reasons to follow you, help me to discern your calling. If what you claim is true, open me to the reality of who you are. Give me an understanding of you that is coherent, convincing, and that leads to the life that you promise. Amen.

Prayer of Belief

Lord Jesus Christ, I admit that I am weak and sinful, but through you I am loved and accepted. Thank you for paying my debt on the cross. Thank you for taking my sins and granting me complete forgiveness. I believe that you have been raised from the dead, and I now turn to you as my Saviour and Lord. Amen.

SONG - King Of Kings
(Brooke Ligertwood | Jason Ingram | Scott Ligertwood / © 2019 Hillsong Music Publishing Australia) CCLI #22022177

In the darkness we were waiting
Without hope without light
Till from Heaven You came running
There was mercy in Your eyes
To fulfil the law and prophets
To a virgin came the Word
From a throne of endless glory
To a cradle in the dirt

Praise the Father
Praise the Son
Praise the Spirit three in one
God of Glory
Majesty
Praise forever to the King of kings

To reveal the kingdom coming
And to reconcile the lost
To redeem the whole creation
You did not despise the cross
For even in Your suffering
You saw to the other side
Knowing this was our salvation
Jesus for our sake You died

And the morning that You rose
All of heaven held its breath

Till that stone was moved for good
For the Lamb had conquered death
And the dead rose from their tombs
And the angels stood in awe
For the souls of all who'd come
To the Father are restored

And the Church of Christ was born
Then the Spirit lit the flame
Now this Gospel truth of old
Shall not kneel shall not faint
By His blood and in His Name
In His freedom I am free
For the love of Jesus Christ
Who has resurrected me

GOD SENDS

WORD & PRAYER THIS WEEK
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 6-10

Please continue to pray for those discerning the call to Elder training and Women's Shepherding Committee training. May we continue to trust the Lord in this whole process.


COMMUNITY LIFE ANNOUNCEMENTS
We would love to connect. You are welcome to approach any of the service volunteers, and you can fill out a visitor card or contact office@thevine.to.

Prayer Meeting: Saturday, May 10, at Olivet Baptist Church from 10 AM - 12 PM. Childcare and a free pizza lunch will be provided for children ages 1+. Contact Jenn by Friday, May 9 to reserve your child’s spot: jenn@thevine.to. For all who can stay after, we will have a potluck lunch together from 12-1 PM. Sign-up at tinyurl.com/vine-potluck.

Nominees: Our nominations for Elder and Women's Shepherding Committee closed on March 16. After that, the Session met to review the nominations. By now, 7 nominees for Elder and 7 nominees for the Women's Shepherding Committee have been contacted. Let's continue to entrust this process to the Lord in prayer.

DOXOLOGY

(Thomas Ken / Public Domain)
Praise God from whom all blessings flow
Praise Him, all creatures here below
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost

BENEDICTION
—based on Revelation 1:4-5
Grace to you and peace 
from him who is and who was and who is to come,
and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness,
the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.