You are currently browsing the monthly archive for December 2014.
This Sunday will be the last day to give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. Make your checks out to “Immanuel Baptist Church” and write “Lottie Moon” in the memo line. Lottie Moon was a missionary to China many years ago. 100% of the offering goes to support missionaries on the field through the International Mission Board.
PRELUDE –“Rise Again” by Needtobreathe
WELCOME & CALL TO WORSHIP
Song –
“O Come All Ye Faithful” by C. Frederick Oakley, David LaChance Jr. & John Francis Wade
CONFESSION OF SIN
Most merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against You
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved You with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbours as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.
For the sake of Your Son Jesus Christ,
have mercy on us and forgive us;
that we may delight in Your will,
and walk in Your ways,
to the glory of Your Name. Amen.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON –
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him” (John 3:16-17).
Songs –
“Joy to the World” by George Frideric Handel & Isaac Watts
PRAYER
CHILDREN’S BLESSING & DISMISSAL
Song –
“Give us Clean Hands” by Charlie Hall
SCRIPTURE READING – 2 Peter 1:3-11
SERMON
LORD’S TABLE
Songs –
“There is a Fountain” William Cowper
“Rock of Ages” by Augustus Montague Toplady and Thomas Hastings
OFFERING
Song –
“My Jesus I Love Thee” by Adoniram Judson Gordon & William Ralph Featherstone
BENEDICTION
ANNOUNCEMENTS
POSTLUDE – “Brokenness Aside” by All Sons & Daughters
PRELUDE – “Exult in the Savior’s Birth” by Matt Boswell and D.A. Carson
WELCOME & CALL TO WORSHIP
Song –
“Here I Am to Worship” by Tim Hughes
LIGHTING OF FOURTH ADVENT CANDLE
Speaker: Today we light all four Advent candles…
[light the four candles in order]
Speaker: The first candle reminds us of the prophets who foretold of the coming Messiah.The second candle is the Bethlehem Candle, reminding us of God’s preparation for the coming of the Christ-Child to be born in Bethlehem. The third candle reminds us that the Shepherds were the first to receive the glorious news of the birth of Christ. The fourth candle reminds us of the angels and the part God gave them in preparing people for the coming of the Christ-Child.
Speaker: Gabriel brought the wonderful news of the birth of the Messiah to a virgin named Mary, saying:
CONGREGATION: “You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; His kingdom will never end.” Luke 1:31-33
Speaker: An angel also prepared Mary’s fiancé Joseph for the news of her pregnancy, so that Joseph would believe that the child was a sign of the fulfillment of God’s glorious promise, not a sign of Mary’s unfaithfulness: This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.” Matthew 1:18-21
Speaker: A “multitude of the heavenly hosts” celebrated the birth of Christ as they shared the news with the humble shepherds.
CONGREGATION: And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. Luke 2:8-14
Songs –
“Angels We Have Heard On High”
“Hark! the Herald Angels Sing” by Felix Mendelssohn
CONFESSION OF FAITH – The Nicene Creed
I believe in one God,
the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth,
and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only-begotten Son of God,
begotten of the Father before all worlds;
God of God, Light of Light,
very God of very God;
begotten, not made,
being of one substance with the Father,
by whom all things were made.
Who, for us men and for our salvation,
came down from heaven,
and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit
of the virgin Mary,
and was made man;
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate;
He suffered and was buried;
and the third day He rose again,
according to the Scriptures;
and ascended into heaven,
and sits on the right hand of the Father;
and He shall come again, with glory,
to judge the quick and the dead;
whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord and Giver of Life;
who proceeds from the Father and the Son;
who with the Father and the Son
together is worshipped and glorified;
who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins;
and I look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
PRAYER
CHILDREN’S BLESSING & DISMISSAL – New City Catechism Q 26
Song –
“O Come All Ye Faithful” by C. Frederick Oakeley and John Francis Wade
SCRIPTURE READING – Luke 2:21-35
SERMON – “What It Means That Christ Has Been Born”
LORD’S TABLE
Song –
“In Christ Alone” by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend
OFFERING
Songs –
“Joy to the World” by George Frideric Handel and Isaac Watts
BENEDICTION
ANNOUNCEMENTS
POSTLUDE – “Hallelujah Chorus” by Handel
The Waglers are having an open house on Christmas day from 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Stop by for food, games, and football (or Christmas movies).
Please share with others and contact them to let them know you’re coming.
The Lottie Moon Christmas Offering is an opportunity to support the work of our International Mission Board missionaries across the globe. All gifts (100%) given through the Lottie Moon Offering go directly to the field to share the gospel in large metropolitan areas and remote villages throughout the world.
We’ll have a poster put up on the Missions Board at The Meeting Place and put some prayer guides on the Information Table. We’ll be collecting donations the next two Sundays. You can drop a check in the offering with “Lottie Moon” in the memo line.
If you have any questions, contact our Deacons of International Missions at internationalmissions at immanuel dash baptist dot net.
We’re hosting a “Families in the City” Night on Friday, January 9th, at 6:00 PM at The Meeting Place.
Mark your calendar if you’re interested in discussing the joys and struggles of raising kids in Chicago. There will be a catered meal and a guest couple who has done it.
If you would be willing to help provide babysitting onsite that night, please email info at immanuel dash baptist dot net ASAP. We need volunteers to serve in this way.
Men,
The bi-weekly Men’s Study is on for this Saturday. Breakfast at 8:00 AM at Phil W’s house. Contact him at men with questions or to RSVP.
PRELUDE – “Joy to the World” by Chris Rice
WELCOME & CALL TO WORSHIP
Song –
“What Child Is This, Who, Laid to Rest?” by William Chatterton Dix
LIGHTING OF THIRD ADVENT CANDLE
Speaker: “Today we light the first, second, and third Advent candles…”
Speaker: The first candle reminded us of the prophets who foretold of the coming of Christ, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. The second candle reminds us of God’s preparation for the coming of the Christ-Child, to be born in Bethlehem of Judah. The third candle reminds us that the Shepherds were the first to receive the glorious news of the birth of Christ. Just as they received this news, when they had witnessed it for themselves, they too became messengers for Christ.
Speaker: God uses messengers to tell His wonderful news. Isaiah 52 says this about God’s messengers: “How lovely on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who announces peace and brings good news of happiness, who announces salvation, and says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’ Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices, they shout joyfully together; For they will see with their own eyes when the LORD restores Zion. Break forth, shout joyfully together, you waste places of Jerusalem; For the LORD has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem. The LORD has bared His holy arm in the sight of all the nations, that all the ends of the earth may see the salvation of our God” (Is. 52:7-10).
Speaker: The shepherds received from the angels the wonderful news telling them of the birth of the Savior.
Congregation: “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Lk. 2:8-14).
Speaker: The shepherds acted on the news given them by the angels, and then they, too became messengers!
Congregation: “And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds” (Lk. 2:15-18).
Song –
“Silent Night” by Franz Xaver Gruber, John Freeman Young, and Joseph Mohr
CONFESSION OF FAITH – The Nicene Creed
I believe in one God,
the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth,
and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only-begotten Son of God,
begotten of the Father before all worlds;
God of God, Light of Light,
very God of very God;
begotten, not made,
being of one substance with the Father,
by whom all things were made.
Who, for us men and for our salvation,
came down from heaven,
and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit
of the virgin Mary,
and was made man;
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate;
He suffered and was buried;
and the third day He rose again,
according to the Scriptures;
and ascended into heaven,
and sits on the right hand of the Father;
and He shall come again, with glory,
to judge the quick and the dead;
whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord and Giver of Life;
who proceeds from the Father and the Son;
who with the Father and the Son
together is worshipped and glorified;
who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins;
and I look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
PRAYER
CHILDREN’S BLESSING & DISMISSAL – New City Catechism Q 26
Song –
“Come Thou Long Expected Jesus” by Charles Wesley, Michael Adler, and William Walker
SCRIPTURE READING – Ephesians 2:11-12
SERMON – “What If Christ Had Never Been Born?”
LORD’S TABLE
Songs –
“Hallelujah What a Savior” by Philip Paul Bliss
“All I Have is Christ” by Jordan Kauflin
OFFERING
Songs –
“O, Holy Night” by Adolphe Charles Adam, John Sullivan Dwight, Placide Cappeau
“It Came Upon the Midnight Clear” by Edmund Hamilton Sears and Richard Storrs Willis
BENEDICTION
ANNOUNCEMENTS
POSTLUDE – “While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks” by Andrew Peterson
by Jeremiah Hill
We believe that the Law of God is the eternal and unchangeable rule of His moral government; that it is holy, just, and good; and that the inability which the Scriptures ascribe to fallen men to fulfill its precepts, arises entirely from their love of sin; to deliver them from which, and to restore them through a Mediator to unfeigned obedience to the holy Law, is one great end of the Gospel, and of the Means of Grace connected with the establishment of the visible church.
The Substance and End of the Law
Calvin defines for us three uses of the Law. The first is ‘a mirror,’ in which we see our own hearts in light of God’s Law. This purpose is to drive us to Christ, the only true Law-keeper, as our hope. The second use refers to that part of the Law which is meant to govern society at large. In part, we see this at use in all places such as our own government as it restricts our right to take the life of another. Parenthetically we might ask the question of how anyone other than a believer rightly knows the laws of God. The answer is simply that the Law of God is written on the hearts of man (Rom. 2:15). There is an innate sense of knowing what God abhors and what he loves. It must also be noted that as people continue to defy the true God, they are given over to and begin to cherish more their own sin and idolatry. This process leads to a forfeiture of our intuition of God’s Law. The third use of the Law is that part of the Law that we use as Christians to guide our holy living.
The third of these uses is the most widely debated of the three. To begin we must look briefly at both salvation and sanctification in the Old Testament (OT). Salvation in the OT was never achieved through Law-keeping or moral uprightness. Post fall, the only way for final harmony to exist between Man and God is through the taking away of death and the giving of life. This was always done through faith in the mediation of God, symbolically portrayed in the slaying of animals (Heb. 10:4), and finally fulfilled in the slaying of the Son. Therefore the mode of salvation has always been through faith in God’s promise of a mediator.
Regarding sanctification, we must ask whether God’s demands in the Law are anything other than a concrete expression of God’s very own character. In giving the Law, does God impose a character foreign to his own? Does God intend through the Law for them to conform to an ideal other than himself? Of course, God does not have to keep his own laws regarding mediation or maintaining physical purity. Assuming that God’s commands are never arbitrary, the purpose of every command must be seen in light of its end, experiencing divine and brotherly harmony. Every command maintains and establishes life to that end. I conclude here that the very substance of the Law is none other than the character of God the Trinity, chiefly manifested to us in the person and life of Jesus Christ. In both salvation and sanctification, continuity has always existed between the OT and the NT because Christ is the substance of salvation and the Law.
If we put forth that the Law has an entirely different aim than that of Christ, there will be little use for the Law. If the Law was intended to be bounce-house rules for the nation of Israel and they alone, we have no use. But based on what we have shown so far, and from Christ coming to fulfill the Law, not destroy it (Mt. 5:17), we can see that the Law was intended for all of God’s people, before or after Christ came, to follow. God’s character is manifest in the Law such that conformity to the Law is conformity to Christ. But as we move throughout the OT Law, there are several laws that cannot apply to us; for example, those regarding animal sacrifice for atonement (Lev. 16). How then do we go about discerning what we are to following with regard to OT Law? No simple answer will be offered here (there is not simple answer). We can at least say that the civil and ceremonial laws terminated in Christ. Beyond this, Christ enlarges and reinterprets different laws such as adultery and loving our neighbors (Mt. 5). Those laws which pass through the lens of the teaching of Christ and his apostles are clearly required of us. In addition, those closely associated with these laws should not be easily cast aside.
Thus the moral law set forth in the OT which is both reiterated and reinterpreted by Christ is for us a guide to living like Christ. To dismiss the application of the Law is to look at Christ – who perfectly loved and honored God apart from any images or ill-utterance, who perfectly rested on the Sabbath (in spite of the rabbinic traditions), who perfectly submitted to Mary and Joseph, who perfectly loved men and women alike, who spoke nothing but truth, who had no want to even think of stealing or doubting his Father – with little significance given to his Law-fulfilling obedience.
Select Bibliography
The Cross and Salvation – Demarest
Calvin – Institutes 2
Theology for the Church – Akin
This year’s Christmas party will be held this Saturday (12/13) at 6:00 PM. The kids are planning a performance for us and there will also be some different activities for the kids such as ornament making, pin the nose on frosty, and a photo booth. There will be different soups and salads for dinner as well as plenty of yummy desserts and a hot chocolate bar! I hope you can make it for a fun night of fellowship and celebration! Merry Christmas!
Email koinonia at immanuel dash baptist dot net with questions.
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