ORDER OF WORSHIP
Call To Worship
Psalm 111 : 1 – 3
1 Praise the Lord. I will extol the Lord with all my heart in the council of the upright and in the assembly. 2 Great are the works of the Lord; they are pondered by all who delight in them. 3 Glorious and majestic are His deeds, and His righteousness endures forever.
詩篇 111 : 1 – 3
1 萬軍之耶和華啊，你的居所何等可愛！ 2 我羨慕渴想耶和你們要讚美耶和華！我要在正直人的大會中，並公會中，一心稱謝耶和華。2 耶和華的作為本為大，凡喜愛的都必考察。 3 他所行的是尊榮和威嚴，他的公義存到永遠。
Worship Through Songs
Good day blessed flock of our Lord—rescued, secured, and upheld by the mighty hand of God.
One pastor-writer, when asked by the very common greeting, ‘How are you doing?’, tried to make a habit of responding: ‘Better than I deserve’. According to him, in light of God’s amazing grace—not only in salvation, but even in the daily protection and providence He provides—this is the only proper response. He explains that when we consider the fact that despite the presence of much pain and unpleasantness in the world, we still experience a decent measure of goodness and beauty in our lives, we have to acknowledge that indeed God has been more than generous to us. We have to admit that as fallen, rebellious sinners deserving only of death, we are truly treated much better than we deserve.
In his book The Good and Beautiful God, James Bryan Smith on the chapter about the generosity of God wrote,
“In Jesus’ parable a vineyard owner hires a group of men early in the morning, around 6 a.m. These early workers agreed to work for a standard day’s wages. Seeing there is much work to be done and not enough time to do it, the owner hires another group, who start around 9 a.m. He does the same at noon, 3 p.m. and finally at 5 p.m. At the end of the day the owner pays the workers. Some have worked twelve or thirteen hours, others have worked for only five or six, and the very last group has only labored for one or two hours. Here comes the shocking part: they all are paid the same amount of money—a standard day’s wage! This is stunning and seems highly unfair, so those who worked all day begin to complain. The owner replies, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage?” The owner concludes with another cutting question: “Are you envious because I am generous?”
Bible scholar Joachim Jeremias notes that a similar parable was told by Jewish rabbis. In their parable the punch line is quite different. The owner of the vineyard explains that the last group got the same amount because they earned it—they worked harder and did more in their short time than the first group did all day. Jesus’ story is exactly the opposite. It has nothing do with earning, justice or fairness. Jeremias concludes:
In the parable of Jesus, the labourers who were engaged last show nothing to warrant a claim to a full day’s wages; that they receive it is entirely due to the goodness of their employer. Thus in this apparently trivial detail lies the difference between two worlds: the world of merit, and the world of grace; the law contrasted with the gospel. . . . Will you then murmur against God’s goodness? That is the core of Jesus’ vindication of the gospel: Look what God is like—all goodness.”
He then concluded the section…“We live in a world where people demand, oppress, wound and condemn. In our world we earn what we get. So we project that onto God. It is easy to conceive of a demanding, oppressive, condemning, wounding god who must be appeased. The God Jesus knows is utterly generous.”
In contrast to an often harsh and exacting world, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ is utterly generous. Because He is wonderfully lavish, we are in fact treated considerably better than we deserve. As the Psalmist declared ‘If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.’
In Christ, God provided, at great cost to himself, the atonement and propitiation for our sins—not counting our sins against us but laying them all on Jesus the sacrificial Lamb. On the cross He made a way to satisfy his divine justice and holy wrath against sin so He can, without violation to his character, lavish his loving-kindness and tender mercies on undeserving sinners such as us. Love so amazing and so divine demands from us a most earnest and extensive response. As Scriptures declare, ‘It is his kindness that leads us to repentance.’ This same kindness; mercy; and generosity, leads us now to worship him.
‘Thank you Lord, for saving my soul
Thank you Lord, for making me whole;
Thank you Lord, for giving to me
Thy great salvation so rich and free.’*
In Jesus. Through Jesus. For Jesus. Amen.
*[Seth and Bessie Sykes]
Anthem
In Christ Alone with Cornerstone
Scripture Reading
2nd Corinthians 8 : 1 – 4; 9 : 4
8 1 We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, 2 for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, 4 begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints
9 4 Otherwise, if some Macedonians come with me and find that you are not ready, we would be humiliated—to say nothing of you—for being so confident.
歌林多後書 8 : 1 – 4; 9 : 4
8 1 弟 兄 們 ， 我 把 神 賜 給 馬 其 頓 眾 教 會 的 恩 告 訴 你 們 ，
2 就 是 他 們 在 患 難 中 受 大 試 煉 的 時 候 ， 仍 有 滿 足 的 快 樂 ， 在 極 窮 之 間 還 格 外 顯 出 他 們 樂 捐 的 厚 恩 。
3 我 可 以 證 明 ， 他 們 是 按 著 力 量 ， 而 且 也 過 了 力 量 ， 自 己 甘 心 樂 意 的 捐 助 ，
4 再 三 的 求 我 們 ， 准 他 們 在 這 供 給 聖 徒 的 恩 情 上 有 分 ；
9 4 萬 一 有 馬 其 頓 人 與 我 同 去 ， 見 你 們 沒 有 預 備 ， 就 叫 我 們 所 確 信 的 ， 反 成 了 羞 愧 ； 你 們 羞 愧 ， 更 不 用 說 了 。
Sermon
Rev. Vicente Sia
謝國智牧師
Communion
Song of Reflection
English:
中文:
Tithes And Offering
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Benediction Song
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