July 14, 2019
This week we’ll be in our sixth week of Christ in the Psalms at Park Church. This is an annual summer series dating back to 2012 when we started with Psalm 1. Why do we do this each year? The Psalms give us a vocabulary and a “hymnal” for relating to God through the full range of human experience and emotion, ultimately pointing us to Jesus.
As another way to engage with the Psalms, we have a different artist in our community make a piece each week to be displayed in the foyer. Last week, our piece for Psalm 94 was done by Nikki Rasmussen. Read more about that here. See and read about all past Christ in the Psalms artwork pieces here (they go back as far as Psalm 41). Lastly, be sure to visit the side gallery (where you get coffee) each week to see all the originals for this year’s Christ in the Psalms series displayed together.
Here’s how you can prepare this week:
1. Read through our text, Psalm 95.
Psalm 95 comes to us in two main parts, a call to consider our God and worship Him (v.1–5), and a call not to harden our hearts when we hear His voice (v.6–11). In regards to the second part, the example given is the rebellion by God’s people at Meribah and Massah, where the people were given water from the rock Moses struck: “And [Moses] called the name of the place Massah and Meribah, because of the quarreling of the people of Israel, and because they tested the LORD by saying, ‘Is the LORD among us or not?'”(Exodus 17:7; Massah means “testing” and Meribah means “quarreling.”).
As Christians, we’re called to remember the Rock that was struck for us in the wilderness, our Lord Jesus, who was given to us in our testing of and quarreling against God. Hear again the charge of the Psalmist, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts…”
2. Read, pray, and sing through the service:
CALL TO WORSHIP: Psalm 95:1–5, Welcome (From Immanuel Nashville):
To all who are weary and need rest,
To all who mourn and long for comfort,
To all who feel worthless and wonder if God cares,
To all who fail and desire strength,
To all who sin and need a Savior,
This church opens wide her doors
with a welcome from Jesus Christ,
the Ally of His enemies, the Defender of the guilty,
the Justifier of the inexcusable, the Friend of sinners,
Welcome!
Psalm 92 (It Is Good) (Joel Limpic)
Come Thou Fount (Above All Else) (Shane Barnard, Robert Robinson, John Wyeth)
CONFESSION OF SIN: Based on The Worship Sourcebook:
Lord, we are like sheep, and we get lost.
We forget the needs of our neighbors and do not love you above all else.
We need a Savior, so we long for Jesus. Come, fill our lives, Jesus. Amen.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Isaiah 53:4–6
Man Of Sorrows (Matt Crocker, Brooke Ligertwood)
GREETING, SERMON, RESPONSE & COMMUNION:
Twenty Three (Aaron Strumpel)
Jesus Paid It All (Elvina Hall, Kristen Stanfill)