We Believe – the Confession of 1967
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WORSHIP SERVICE - MARCH 21, 2021 FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT We Believe – The Confession of 1967 The Blue, The Red And The Gold: Colors of the official seal of the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. The Golden, Down-Reaching Hand (Repeated From The Nicene Banner): God, relating to His world. The Crown (Repeated From The Westminster Banner) And The Nail-Scarred Hand: The death and victory of Christ as he reconciles the world. The Four Hands Of Different Colors, The Clasped Hands And The Green Circle: The reconciled world at the foot of the cross - God's act of reconciliation being the starting point and theme of the Confession of 1967. The Stars And Planets On The Blue Background: The Space-Age setting of this Confession. Good Morning! Welcome to Riviera’s worship service. We are nearing the end of our Lenten Sermon Series on The Confessions and hope that you now have a better understanding of our PCUSA theological tenets and Riviera’s in today’s world. Thank you for connecting with us in our digital sacred space united in community! Let us know you worshiped with us this morning by filling out the Friendship Form located on our website https://rivierachurch.org/ If you are joining us via Facebook or YouTube, please check in or leave us a comment so we may connect with you after the service. Don’t forget to keep checking our main social media outlets, Facebook and Instagram, for up-to-date information, find us @RivieraChurch 1 GATHERING OPENING HYMN 2 CHIMING OF THE HOUR & WELCOMING THE LIGHT GREETINGS Rev. Martha Shiverick CALL TO WORSHIP [Confession of 1967 9.16, 17] Susan and Christian Mazzola One: We believe that God has created the world of space and time to be the sphere of God’s dealings with humankind. In its beauty and vastness, sublimity and awfulness, order and disorder, the world reflects to the eye of faith the majesty and mystery of its Creator. ALL: We believe that God has created us for personal relationships in which we may respond to the love of the Creator. Life is a gift to be received with gratitude and a task to be pursued with courage. Let us worship God! CALL TO CONFESSION [C’67 9.11] Rev. Dr. David Welton Jesus Christ is the judge of all people. His judgment discloses the ultimate seriousness of life and gives promise of God’s final victory over the power of sin and death. All who put their trust in Christ face divine judgment without fear, for the judge is their redeemer. In that confidence, let us confess our sin. PRAYER OF CONFESSION unison [C’67 9.7, 12] In Jesus Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself. The reconciling act of God in Christ exposes the evil in us as sin in the sight of God. In sin, we claim mastery of our own lives, turn against God and neighbors, and become exploiters and despoilers of the world. God of grace, as you come to us in mercy, show us how we have been complicit in the sin of our society. Then, admitting our sin, let us repent, turn to you, and receive forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our redeemer. ASSURANCE OF PARDON [C’67 9.10] Hear the good news: God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Godself. The risen Christ is the savior of all. All who are joined to Christ by faith are set right with God and commissioned to serve as Christ’s reconciling community. Amen. 3 CHILDREN’S SERMON Rev. Rosemary Noga Welton CHILDREN’S SONG THE WORD PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION [C’67 9.27] Christian Mazzola The one sufficient revelation of God is Jesus Christ, the Word of God incarnate. The Holy Spirit bears unique and authoritative witness to Christ through the Holy Scriptures, which are received and obeyed as the word of God written. The Scriptures are not a witness among others, but the witness without parallel, by which our faith and obedience are nourished and regulated. Guided by the Spirit, let us listen for the Word of God. Amen. 4 SCRIPTURE 2 Corinthians 5.16-20 From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us. So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. CHORAL ANTHEM O God, We Bear the Imprint of Your Face SERMON Rev. Rosemary Noga Welton Lent #5 - We Believe - The Confession of 1967 THE CONFESSION OF 1967 [9.44] (unison) God has created the peoples of the earth to be one universal family. In this reconciling love, God overcomes the barriers between sisters and brothers and breaks down every form of discrimination based on racial or ethnic difference, real or imaginary. The church is called to bring all people to receive and uphold one another as persons in all relationships of life: in employment, housing, education, leisure, marriage, family, church, and the exercise of political rights. Therefore, the church labors for the abolition of all racial discrimination and ministers to those injured by it. Congregations, individuals, or groups of Christians who exclude, dominate, or patronize others, however subtly, resist the Spirit of God and bring contempt on the faith which they profess. PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE & LORD’S PRAYER Rev. Dr. David Welton Holy God, who, in Jesus, touched the earth, admiring its beauty and blessing its people, we honor you for the gift of life and all the gifts that life brings us: food, shelter, company, the experiences that make us think, the people that bring out the best in us. Hear our prayers for the places in this world where beauty has turned to ugliness, food has been replaced by famine, friendship has been forgotten, and fear, hostility and hopelessness have the upper hand. 5 God in your mercy, Bring healing, bring peace. Hear our prayers for people who cannot pray because of pain, loss or worry; especially we pray for _______ and all those we name in our hearts______. God, in your mercy, Bring healing, bring peace. Hear our prayers for ourselves and our community - our yearnings, our hopes, any doubt, jealousy or anger to which we hold too tightly. God, in your mercy, Bring healing, bring peace. And hear us as we pray together the prayer Jesus has taught us: For the Lord’s Prayer we appreciate the diverse traditions and backgrounds that make up the Riviera family of faith and encourage you to use whatever words for this prayer are meaningful for you. Our Creator, who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen. ANNOUNCEMENTS Be in the Know – read the bulletin and see what opportunities for ministry you are interested in making a connection with. CALL TO OFFERING Rev. Martha Shiverick INVITATION TO GIVE TITHES AND OFFERINGS The Act of Gratitude 1. You may donate today with a credit/debit card at www.rivierachurch.org and click on the GIVE button or use the scan me code with your phone camera. 2. You may download the free Give+ app (iOS & Android) 6 3. You may set up online payment via your bank bill pay program. 4. You may also mail in your check to the church at Riviera Presbyterian Church at 5275 Sunset Drive, Miami FL 33143 The 2021 Per Capita is $37 per member. Each church is asked to pay this annual apportionment. If you would like to help us defray the cost, we welcome your donation. You may donate online https://www.rivierachurch.org/give under Per Capita. DOXOLOGY Praise God from whom all blessings flow; Praise God, all creatures here below; Praise God, ye hosts in heaven above; Praise God, the Trinity of Love. Amen CHARGE AND BENEDICTION Rev. Rosemary Noga Welton We welcome back to our pulpit and thank the Rev. Rosemary Noga Welton for leading us in worship today. We invite you to connect and virtually gather with us as we celebrate Holy Week and Easter, starting on March 28th with Palm Sunday service. Here is a video link to create your own Palm Leave Cross: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znDyR8_POCU 7 CLOSING HYMN 8 After the worship service you are invited to Zoom Holy Grounds Fellowship Gathering at 11:45am This is a time to reconnect with one another and if you are new to our worship service we extend an invitation to join and introduce yourself. We would love to meet you! Meeting ID 829-1129-7119 | Passcode 056833 Thank you for worshipping online today. Please, take a moment to fill out the Friendship Form on our website to let us know you worshiped with us today and you may also share any prayer requests or joys which will be sent to our pastoral care team.