Church Blog
Introducing the Psalms
“The Book of Psalms was set forth unto us by the Holy Ghost, to be esteemed as a most precious treasure, wherein all things are contained that appertain to true felicity, as well in this life as in the life to come…If we would know the great and high majesty of God, here we may see the brightness thereof shine most clearly.” Preface to the Psalms, the Geneva Bible We’ve just finished the book of Mark! I have immensely enjoyed…
August 2024 – Call and Benediction
Call to Worship Psalm 113:1-3 Praise the LORD!Praise, O servants of the LORD, praise the name of the LORD! 2 Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and forevermore!3 From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the LORD is to be praised! Psalm 113 is a classic hymn of praise. It begins with a call to worship (1-3) followed by a ground in the exalted being of God (4-6) and then the works of God (7-9).…
June 2024 – Call and Benediction
Call to Worship Psalm 145:1-3 I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever.2 Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever.3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable. Psalm 145 is the last psalm bearing the superscription “of David.” None of the remaining five psalms (146-150) bear any superscription. The psalm is an acrostic and the first letter of each verse writes out the Hebrew alphabet.…
Lo! He Comes with Clouds Descending
Lyrics The Second Coming of Christ (called the Parousia) is one of the main themes of the New Testament and yet one can hardly find a song about it fit for Christian worship. Thankfully, Charles Wesley gave us such a song in this hymn. The hymn begins with the archaic word, “Lo!” this is equivalent to the contemporary “Look!” It’s intended to get our attention and as we hear the congregation singing it, our minds should heed the command and…
May 2024 – Call and Benediction
Call to Worship Psalm 95:1-3 Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!3 For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. Psalm 95 is a hymn of praise to God and contains no superscription giving details about its authorship or the circumstances in which it was written.…
March 2024 – Call and Benediction
Call to Worship Psalm 100:1-5, A Psalm for giving thanks Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!2 Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 5 For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness…
February 2024 – Call and Benediction
Call to Worship Psalm 136:1-3 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; Psalm 136 is unique in the book of Psalms in that it contains a refrain, repeated after every line. This kind of structure implies that it was originally intended to by sung antiphonally – with the leader singing the…
Beginnings and Endings
When novelists write, they labor over the first and last sentences. You probably know some of these already. Dickens started off A Tale of Two Cities with the now famous line, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Orwell ended his prescient work 1984 with the ominous line, “He loved big brother.” There’s also a reason (nearly) every Christian knows Genesis 1:1 by heart. Beginnings and endings frame everything in between. All I need to…
January 2024 – Call and Benediction
Call to Worship Psalm 147:1-6 Praise the Lord!For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel.3 He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.4 He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.5 Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.6 The Lord lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground. This is…
Christ Is Risen
This resurrection hymn by Keith and Kristin Getty is one of the best examples of contemporary hymnody.
Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery
Come behold the wondrous mysteryIn the dawning of the King;He the theme of heaven’s praises,Robed in frail humanity.In our longing, in our darkness,Now the light of life has come;Look to Christ, who condescended;Took on flesh to ransom us. Come behold the wondrous mystery:He the perfect Son of Man;In His living, in His suffering,Never trace nor stain of sin.See the true and better AdamCome to save the hell-bound man;Christ the great and sure fulfillmentOf the law; in Him we stand. Come behold the…
Order of Service
Dear GCC, as you come to church this week you’ll notice a change to our order of service, namely, the beginning of our service will look like this: Announcements Call to Worship Prayer of Worship So why are we making this change? It’s not just to ‘shake things up’ or ‘try something new.’ Rather, it’s for practical and theological reasons. Practical Reason The practical reason is that announcements can be disruptive – right after a song of heartfelt worship, instead…
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