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Joshua 5:9-12 ... they ate the crops of the land of Canaan
Psalm 32 Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven
2 Corinthians 5:16-21 God reconciled us to himself through Christ
Luke 15:1-3,11b-32 The parable of the prodigal son
Suggested Hymns (From Denis Towner. TIS = Together in Song; AHB = Australian Hymn Book; SA = Sing Alleluia)
| Hymns for Lent 4, Yr. C | ||||
| lesson | hymn | TIS | AHB | SA |
| G | Amazing grace (how sweet the sound) | 129 | 56 | |
| G | Come let us to the Lord our God | 577 | 490 | |
| O | For the fruits of all creation | 168 | 37 | |
| s | Forgive our sins as we forgive | 635 | 564 | |
| O | Great is your faithfulness | 154 | ||
| O | Guide me O thou great Redeemer | 569 | 478 | |
| G | Hail our once-despised Jesus | 373 | 295 | |
| E | Holy Spirit come, confirm us | 413 | 327 | |
| Ps | How blest are those whose great sin | 20 | ||
| Ps | How firm a foundation you people of God | 578 | 491 | |
| G | I come with joy to meet my Lord | 533 | 452 | |
| G | I will sing the wondrous story | 233 | 173 | |
| E | In Christ there is no east or west | 459 | 459 | |
| O | Jesus invites his saints | 505 | 426 | |
| G | Just as I am without one plea | 584 | 497 | |
| G | Lord of creation, to you be all praise | 626 | 557 | |
| E/G | Love divine, all loves excelling | 217 | 148 | |
| E | My song is love unknown | 341 | 257 | |
| E | No weight of gold or silver | 249 | ||
| E | O come and dwell in us | 315 | ||
| O | O God, your people gather | C581 | ||
| E | O Spirit of the living God | 405 | 318 | |
| s | On this day, the first of days | 368 | ||
| G | Our Father, by whose name | 71 | ||
| G | Put all your trust in God | 555 | 464 | |
| O | Robe yourself, my soul, in gladness | 503 | 424 | |
| O | Shout for joy! The Lord has let us feast | 545 | ||
| Sing praise to the Lord! | 96 | |||
| E | The Church's one foundation | 457 | 385 | |
| G | There's a wideness in God's mercy | 136 | 72 | |
| E | They that believe and are baptized | 479 | 405 | |
| O | This is a day of new beginnings | 653 | ||
| O | Through all the changing scenes of life | 112 | 30 | |
| O | We come unto our faithful God | 387 | ||
| O | We plough the fields and scatter | 130 | 59 | |
| E | We sing the praise of him who died | 347 | 262 |
Other Possible Hymns
(Numbers refer to The Australian Hymn Book and Sing Alleluia. TIS = Together in Song)
36 (TIS 115) Behold the amazing gift of love
56 (TIS 129) Amazing grace
85 (TIS 147) To God be the glory, great things he has done
365 Jesus united by thy grace
482 How can a sinner know / his sins on earth forgiven
519 (TIS 598) Dear Lord and Father of mankind
I can hear Jesus telling me to follow
SA 93 (TIS 248) When Christ was lifted from the earth
Sermon summary (Click here for complete sermon)One Who Loves to Forgive
The story of the prodigal son is well known and its basic message of forgiveness and reconciliation is clear: the father represents God, the one who loves to forgive. Our personal responses will vary according to our felt need for reconciliation and our experience. There is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents. That is not a careless disregard of sin. [Luke 15:6-7,9-10] There is joy now where before there was grief.
Sin, the breaking of a relationship
The basic sense of sin is one of separation from God, and forgiveness is experienced as restoration of a loving relationship. The father was more generous than the law required [Deut. 21:17], but that had no affect on the son who soon spent it all 'in riotous living', giving offence to God and his father.
Recognizing our poverty
When the young man 'came to himself', he saw himself as he really was (not like the church at Laodicea: Revelation 3:16-17). We could regard it as an unworthy motive: He came back because he was hungry. It did not matter.
The father's extravagant welcome
But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. -- Luke 15:20. It is heartfelt like the welcome when Jacob returned after many years and met Esau [Genesis 33:4]. The robe signifies that he is received as an honoured guest, the ring is a sign of authority and the sandals that he is a free man not a slave. [Luke 15:21-22]. ... this son of mine was dead, and is alive again; he was lost and is found!' And they began to celebrate. -- Luke 15:24.
All who return are welcome
There are implications for us. We can always go home and have our relationship with God restored. We need to be ready to accept others whom God accepts. You can recognize the kind of love the father showed. God can provide the spark to jump the gap. All that we wish for is available as a free gift, when we recognize the need to seek forgiveness, and to rely solely on the grace of God in Christ.
Order of Service - Lent 4 Year C - | DBHome | RCL Resources Index |
The Gathering of the People of God
CALL TO WORSHIP
I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you." -- Luke 15:18
So he set off and went to his father.
But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around
him and kissed him. -- Luke 15:20
HYMN Come let us to the Lord our God / with contrite hearts return TIS 577 AHB 490
PRAYER OF ADORATION
Lord Jesus, preaching good tidings to the people, proclaiming release to the captives, setting at liberty those who are bound:
We adore you.
Lord Jesus, friend of the outcast and the poor, feeder of the hungry, healer of the sick.
We adore you.
Lord Jesus, denouncing the oppressor, exposing the hypocrite, overcoming evil with good.
We adore you.
Lord Jesus, pattern of gentleness, teacher of holiness, prophet of the kingdom of heaven.
We adore you.
Lord Jesus, dying to save us from our sins, rising to give us eternal life, ascending to prepare our heavenly home.
We adore you.
CONFESSION
Because we nurture too many grudges against others: Lord have mercy.
Lord have mercy.
Because we are sometimes unwilling to forgive: Christ have mercy.
Christ have mercy.
Because we are slow to seek peace and reconciliation: Lord have mercy.
Christ have mercy.
DECLARATION OF FORGIVENESS AND DOXOLOGY
When you were dead in trespasses, God made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses, erasing the
record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross. -- Colossians 2:13-14
I therefore declare to you the forgiveness of all your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
[From Uniting in Worship and NRSV]
WELCOME AND GREETING EACH OTHER
Service of the Word
INTRODUCTION OF THEME: The One who loves to forgive.
OLD TESTAMENT Joshua 5:9-12 ... they ate the crops of the land of Canaan
PSALM 32 Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven
EPISTLE 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 God reconciled us to himself through Christ
GOSPEL Luke 15:1-3,11-32 The parable of the prodigal son
HYMN Great is your faithfulness TIS 154
SERMON
HYMN [With introduction - see sermon] Dear Lord and Father of mankind TIS 598 AHB 519
Old Verse 4.
With that deep hush subduing all
Our words and works that drown
The tender whisper of Thy call,
As noiseless let Thy blessing fall
As fell Thy manna down.
OFFERING AND DEDICATION
SONG 1. I can hear Jesus telling me to follow
I can see a world that needs his tender touch
But I can't walk alone, I'll never do it on my own
What I need is a people to belong to.
To walk the road of faith takes more than my own strength
And to change the world I need to work with you
And I know that Jesus loves me. I can see this love in you
As we serve the church, the church will serve us, too.
2. I have needs that are locked away inside me
There are hurts that I always hide away.
But maybe you have, too: Can I share my life with you?
'Cos together, we're a people to belong to.
3. If I see someone who needs the love of Jesus
I can't fill that person's ev'ry single need.
But if I point to the church where God's spirit lives and moves
I'll be pointing to a people to belong to.
[Words and Music by Michael Plumridge. NCYC 1987]
SHARING TIME [Notices, celebrations, requests for intercessions]
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
[With specific petitions and intercessions:]
Our loving heavenly Father, who called us into a fellowship of reconciliation, we look first to you with thanksgiving for your
coming down the road to meet us repentant sinners finding our way home.
Then we would seek the same reconciliation with others, wherever we are divided in the human family, between nations, races and groups of any kind of distinction, and within our immediate families and communities, and any way which denies our potential for common membership in your family as 'children of God'. Help us to remember with good effect the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ that we must forgive others if we are to be forgiven.
Grant us the confirmation of your Spirit as we seek to live in the way of holiness, looking to you as the source of our salvation, and our fellowship with you and our brothers and sisters, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
COLLECT FOR THE DAY
Gracious Father, you are truly compassionate to all your children, for you remember that we are but dust. So fill us with
your love, that, rising above our weaknesses, we may always remain true to Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
THE LORD'S PRAYER
The Sending Forth of the People of God
HYMN To God be the glory, great things he has done TIS 147 AHB 85
WORD OF MISSION
God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, has given us the ministry of reconciliation; So we are ambassadors for
Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. -- 2 Corinthians 5:18, 20
BLESSING
DISMISSAL
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord:
In the name of Christ. Amen.
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